Trouble in Paramount: Global redundancies hit Australian workers

Paramount is the latest media conglomerate to cut hundreds of staff, with Australia-based workers now being issued with a warning of incoming redundancies.

As of 15 February 2024, Paramount Australia has been hit with an undisclosed number of redundancies. This follows the news of Paramount Global letting go of over 800 workers, almost 3 per cent of staff, according to reports from multiple media publications.

Global Paramount chief executive Bob Bakish informed staff of the upcoming redundancies through a memo stating: “I am confident this is the right decision for our future. These adjustments will help enable us to build on our momentum and execute our strategic vision for the year ahead – and I firmly believe we have much to be excited about.”

Pam Kaufman, president and chief executive of Paramount’s international markets, confirmed that this slate would have a local impact, informing Australian staff of a similar message.

“As Bob shared earlier this week, in order to drive earnings growth in 2024, we have had to make some tough but necessary decisions to ensure we continue growing our revenue while streamlining operations and reducing costs,” Ms Kaufman said.

“I would like to take a moment to thank all those who will be impacted. Your important contributions to our organisation have strengthened our business, and we are grateful for your dedication. These decisions are never easy. I know the changes will be felt across the region, and I encourage you to support one another as we navigate this next phase of our evolution.”

This news comes directly after CBS, owned by Paramount, saw record-breaking advertising and sales during Super Bowl LVIII that drew in over 120 million views. A pre-warning regarding this situation was somewhat referred to when the company’s plan to reduce costs and grow revenue was hinted at in an earlier memo sent out on 25 January that warned Paramount Global would reduce its workforce as a “path to earnings growth”.

Media layoffs in 2024 are becoming a repetitive occurrence. The LA Times cut 115 jobs from its newsroom, which equates to 20 per of its staff. Sports Illustrated cut more than 100 employees to survive “substantial debt and recently missed payments”. YouTube laid off 100 employees from its creator management divisions, and The Business Insider cut 8 per cent of its staff. A rough start to 2024 for media workers.

This is carrying on a trend we saw last year, which had a high frequency of redundancies at the back end of 2023. As previously stated on HR Leader, Spotify, Microsoft, Amazon and Hasbro all let go of a percentage of their workforce in 2023.

Whereas on a more local level, redundancies have occurred at PwC, NAB, Services Australia, and Qantas. In 2023, over a third of Aussie businesses let go of staff, and by the looks of the start of this year, that high frequency of redundancies could be on a similar path or even on the rise in 2024.