“The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is still being felt across all sectors of the economy, something that could have a major impact on a business as diversified as ours,” a Sinclair spokesperson told CNN Business in a statement. statement. “From local businesses and advertisers to distributors and partners, no part of our business ecosystem is fully protected from the effects of the global pandemic.”
“In response, we are currently undergoing company-wide reductions in our workforce, including the company’s headquarters, to ensure we are well positioned for future success,” added the Sinclair spokesperson.
Sinclair’s spokesperson told CNN Business that the company employs 9,211 employees. A 5% reduction would mean that about 460 people will lose their jobs.
Employees were made aware of the layoffs in a Wednesday night memo from Chris Ripley, the company’s president and chief executive officer.
“This decision has not been taken lightly,” Ripley wrote. “Over the past year, we’ve seen many of our colleagues make massive cuts, a step we haven’t taken while making cuts elsewhere, including in capital budgets, discretionary spending and non-essential spending.”
Ripley said those “proactive steps” meant that the “workforce reduction will be significantly less” than if the company had not taken such action. He also said that “affected personnel will receive severance pay and all outplacement services will be provided.”
Nonetheless, Ripley added, “This is undoubtedly one of the hardest messages of my career.”
“But despite the challenge, I remain immensely proud of our team’s intellect, resourcefulness and muster will,” Ripley wrote. “You’ve proven to be the best team in the industry. And it’s this spirit, in each of us and collectively, that I know will help us through.”