WGA East Slams MSNBC's 'Mass Layoffs' As 99 Staffers Brace For Impact Amid Network Shakeup
The union says staffers from 'at least nine different shows' will be affected by what it calls 'the slow, painful trickle of announcements regarding a near-total overhaul of the network's broadcast line-up.'
More from Deadline
Rachel Maddow Criticizes MSNBC Over Handling Of Show Cancellations And Says It Was A "Bad Mistake" To Let Joy Reid Go
Joy Reid Devotes Final MSNBC Show To Ways To Resist During Donald Trump's Presidency: "Fascism Isn't Just Coming, It's Already Here"
MSNBC Confirms Schedule Overhaul With Jen Psaki And 'The Weekend' Anchors Getting Primetime Slots; Joy Reid's Show Canceled
Earlier this week, MSNBC confirmed plans to completely change its daytime, primetime and weekend lineup. Per the guild, the affected staffers worked on The ReidOut, Alex Wagner Tonight, The Weekend, Andrea Mitchell Reports, Ayman Mohyeldin Reports, Weekends with Jonathan Capehart, The Katie Phang Show, Jose Diaz-Balart Reports and Inside with Jen Psaki.
'Although the company has acknowledged that there are plenty of job openings at MSNBC, it has cruelly insisted that the workers slated for layoff must reapply for their jobs to remain employed,' the union wrote in a statement on Tuesday.
MSNBC did previously say there is a nearly 1-to-1 ratio of jobs impacted to new ones being posted, which laid off staff are welcome to apply for — a move has been criticized by many, including the network's own staff, like Rachel Maddow.
'They're being invited to reapply for new jobs. That has never happened at this scale in this way before when it comes to programming changes, presumably because it is not the right way to treat people, and it's inefficient and it's unnecessary,' she said on air Monday.
In its Tuesday statement, the MSNBC union demanded that the laid off employees be reassigned, rather than laid off and asked to reapply.
The WGA East also one again took aim at the Trump administration, expressing that the MSNBC layoffs are happening 'against the backdrop of the President of the United States making direct threats against MSNBC, among other news outlets, and at a time when it has never been more crucial to have a fully staffed newsroom to cover a democracy under attack.'
Read the full statement below.
Over the past two days, we learned that MSNBC is starting mass layoffs of 99 of our union colleagues from at least nine different shows. This devastating news comes after the slow, painful trickle of announcements regarding a near-total overhaul of the network's broadcast line-up.
Although the Company has acknowledged that there are plenty of job openings at MSNBC, it has cruelly insisted that the workers slated for layoff must reapply for their jobs to remain employed. The MSNBC Union demands the Company not lay off any of the employees it has slated to be laid off but rather reassign them as needed. In the event that any employees are not retained, we demand the Company follow the layoff provisions of the collective bargaining agreement that it entered into with the Union.
The news of layoffs comes against the backdrop of the President of the United States making direct threats against MSNBC, among other news outlets, and at a time when it has never been more crucial to have a fully staffed newsroom to cover a democracy under attack.
Best of Deadline
'Ginny & Georgia' Season 3: Everything We Know So Far
'Poker Face' Season 2: Everything We Know So Far
The Real Story Behind 'The Devil in The White City,' From An Architect's Dream To A Serial Killer's Murder Castle — Historical Images
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hill
27 minutes ago
- The Hill
Texas Democrat says she was threatened with arrest after escort lost her on trail
A Texas state House Democrat said she was threatened with arrest after an officer assigned to follow her lost track of her on a walking trail. Texas state Rep. Sheryl Cole (D) said in a post on X on Tuesday that an escort from the Texas Department of Public Safety, whom she said 'was forced upon me to track my every movement,' lost track of her on the trail, became angry and 'made a scene' in front of her constituents. 'While a little shaken up from the incident, I remain undeterred by this intimidation tactic by House Republicans to have a 24/7 state police presence to intimidate me and my colleagues,' Cole said. Cole's account of the incident comes as a fellow Democratic state representative, Nicole Collier, has chosen to stay on the floor of the state House chamber for more than 24 hours rather than having a law enforcement officer shadow her. After the state House Democrats returned to the Lone Star State on Monday, ending their two-week out-of-state stint to prevent Republicans from passing a new map, state Speaker Dustin Burrows (R) declared that those who came back would have an officer with them to ensure they didn't leave the state again. Collier chose to stay in the state House overnight instead and told MSNBC's Ali Vitali in an interview that she would stay 'as long as it takes.' 'At the moment that the directive was issued, I felt like it was wrong. It's just wrong to require grown people to get a permission slip to roam about freely. So I resisted,' she said. Cole said she stands in solidarity with Collier, who has 'refused to go along with this charade.' 'We will not be intimidated by this, and history will remember this,' she said. The Texas state legislature is expected to approve a new map as soon as this week, with enough Democrats back in the state for the body to conduct business.
Fox News
43 minutes ago
- Fox News
MSNBC's name change to 'MS NOW' gets rude welcome from social media
MSNBC's new name was mocked by critics on Monday and compared to a failed computer software product and a fundraiser for a disease, as the liberal network separates itself from NBCUniversal as part of Comcast's corporate spinoff. The network's new name will change to "My Source News Opinion World," or 'MS NOW.' The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported on Monday that the MSNBC name change was part of the network's effort to separate itself from NBC's brand. Semafor's Josh Billinson compared the new name to a failed software package. "MS Now sounds like a short-lived Windows operating system from the early 2000s that needlessly redesigned too much and failed to be adopted by a critical mass of users," he wrote on X. Comcast's new spinoff company, Versant, will comprise several other NBC brands, including CNBC, USA, Oxygen and E! CNBC will get to keep its name but will change its logo. Going forward, the NBCUniversal News Group will only include NBC News, the NBC News Now streaming service, Telemundo and owned-and-operated local stations. The Wall Street Journal's Kyle Smith wrote that MS NOW, "Sounds like a fundraiser for multiple sclerosis." John Cassidy of The New Yorker said, "I spy a consultant's (costly) recommendation." Mark Lazarus, who will serve as the head of Versant, told the WSJ that the new company hoped to mitigate "brand confusion" in the spinoff. He said MS NOW would still cater to a progressive audience and prioritize "holding the political figures from both parties to account." Rich Lowry, the editor-in-chief of the National Review, joked that while the name is set to change, MSNBC's reputation would remain the same. "OUT: MSNBC as representative of ridiculous left-wing cant masquerading as news. IN: MS NOW as representative of ridiculous left-wing cant masquerading as news," Lowry wrote. "Think about how many millions consultants got paid to come up with……MS NOW w/ a Microsoft paint logo," Breaking Points host Saagar Enjeti wrote. Former MSNBC host Keith Olbermann mocked his past employer, saying, "MSNBC to change name to MS NOW no I'm not kidding." Columnist T. Beckett Adams joked, "Mrs. Now? It's MS Now." "MSDNC worked just fine," Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, wrote on X. MSNBC's employees also reacted to the name change as part of the spinoff. Jesse Rodriguez, MSNBC's vice president of editorial and bookings, said in a post that network's mission was not going to change. "Exciting news," he wrote. "Our mission will not change. Our commitment to our loyal viewers will not change. Who we are is not changing." MSNBC's senior vice president for communications, Richard Hudock, wrote, "Change requires flexibility, adaptability, and an open mind. This change is good for us." MSNBC and NBC contributor Anthony Coley reacted, "With no corporate ties to Microsoft or NBC, this makes sense." The network's morning show, "Morning Joe," also reacted to the news on Monday. "What I've said on this show time and time again is you look at the people that are running the company, they're entrepreneurial," co-host Joe Scarborough said. "Right, like when you have somebody come into your company after working for big corporations, and you're talking, you're sitting there, and they go, we want you to be entrepreneurial. We want you to come up with new ideas. We want you to push the boundaries. I'm excited about that." "So I'm excited about this, too. It's like, what's in a name? Well, whatever you put into the name," he added. MSNBC's Rachel Maddow reacted to the name change in a statement to Variety. "If there was ever a time for us to change our name, this is it — because we're not just separating from NBC News in corporate terms, we're competing with them now. So I think the distinction is going to be good for us," she said. "What NBC doing in its legacy timeslots — the Today Show, Nightly, Meet the Press — is just a world away from the 24/7 totally independent news operation that we're able to stand up now, thanks to the spin-off," Maddow added.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
"I've had enough... I'm refusing to back down": Rep. Nicole Collier confined inside TX State Capitol
'I've had enough, just like the American people have had enough of the Trump takeover.' Texas state Democratic Rep. Nicole Collier spoke to MSNBC from the Texas State Capitol on Monday. Collier made the decision to confine herself inside after the Texas GOP required police surveillance as a condition for her release. She is refusing to sign a waiver for the law enforcement escort. Solve the daily Crossword
