ESPN is reportedly set to conduct massive layoffs and employees are reportedly on edge as to who will be shown the door.
It won’t be a quick decision so anxiety will be high.
According to Andrew Marchand of the New York Post, there will be three rounds of layoffs for ESPN.
“I think they’re happening relatively soon, I think there’s going to be three rounds, from what I understand,” Marchand said. “In the first round, there’s probably going to be less [on-air] talent, probably more normal people and executives, potentially. We’re speaking now, going into the podcast, and I don’t know exactly, I’ve heard different things about when the first will come in, but then I think there will be two other rounds of layoffs.”
Marchand would then further state some on-air talent is being asked to potentially take less money to stay with the network.
“People are going to have decisions to make on that,” Marchand continued. “They might end up just leaving and getting paid their full contract. That’s a tough decision to make, to keep working and make less versus leaving and getting your full number, but where does that leave you going forward?”
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Back in February, Disney announced plans to cut 7,000 jobs and $5.5 billion in costs from its global workforce.
Bloomberg recently reported the company’s intent to eliminate 15 percent of the entertainment division’s staff.
This is hardly the first time the Worldwide Leader in Sports has gone through massive layoffs. The first major ESPN layoffs occurred in April 2017, when the company laid off approximately 100 employees, including many on-air personalities, writers, and analysts.
The ESPN layoffs in 2020 were a result of the company restructuring to focus on digital and streaming platforms. The job cuts impacted approximately 500 employees, including on-air personalities and behind-the-scenes staff. The company cited the impact of COVID-19 on traditional television viewership as a factor in the decision.
