Global News staff in BC hit with layoffs by parent company Corus
The summer of layoffs at Global News continues with the latest cuts by parent company Corus impacting staff in BC.
Sources with the company told Daily Hive that at least 10 positions with Global BC are impacted. The people cut occupied a range of roles throughout the station.
Corus spokesperson Cathy Paine confirmed the company made “difficult but necessary changes” in its audio and news divisions Wednesday but said she couldn’t share specifics about the BC impacts.
“These decisions were not made lightly and came after long and careful consideration of our business operations,” she said.
The company is implementing new workflows and touting its server-based technology as a way to make things more efficient with fewer workers.
“Given the realities of our industry, we have been faced with the challenges that have come with the significant shift in advertising spending, with the increased and unregulated presence of foreign-owned media platforms.”
A legacy station in Ontario, 900 CHML in Hamilton, is also closing completely.
Daily Hive reached out to Unifor for comment on the latest layoffs but we have not heard back.
Corus has been doing layoffs since July. The company revealed last month one in four of its workers would be cut. That news came after a third-quarter analyst and investor call where the company said its priorities were cutting costs and managing its liabilities.
Those layoffs have affected local news across Canada. Global Okanagan, a fixture for communities throughout the region, saw nearly two dozen jobs eliminated in the last cuts.
The gloomy environment has pushed at least one of the remaining reporters out of business as well. Breanna Karstens-Smith, a longtime Global News journalist who’s worked in BC and Alberta, revealed last month she’s leaving the profession on her own terms after 14 years.
“The gallows that are local news are no longer worth it,” she wrote on X. “The ādo more with lessā model with layoffs constantly looming isnāt attractive to me.”
Today was my last at Global Edmonton. After 14 years in journalism, the gallows that are local news are no longer worth it. The ādo more with lessā model with layoffs constantly looming isnāt attractive to me. Being a reporter lived up to every dream. Now Iām excited for new ones pic.twitter.com/ZWlRPNpUHQ
ā Breanna K (@Breanna_KS) July 17, 2024
Global News’ main competitor, CTV News, was also gutted with layoffs this year. Several key reporters and anchors across the country were let go, and local broadcasts in certain markets were axed altogether.
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