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Univision logo

Layoffs and news programming cuts underway at Univision as part of restructuring

April 25, 2020 by Veronica Villafañe

Layoffs are underway at Univision, as well as cuts in weekend news programming, part of a company restructuring CEO Vince Sadusky announced in a dire staff memo.

In it, Sadusky states a “significant drop in advertising” caused by the coronvirus-induced recession has impacted the company  and requires “difficult cost containment actions in order to protect the health of our business moving forward during these unprecedented times.”

Those actions include company-wide layoffs, furloughs and executive pay cuts. Not announced in the April 21 email: the elimination of local newscasts.

Inside sources have confirmed the company has pulled the plug on Saturday newscasts at Univision stations in New York, Miami, Los Angeles, Houston, Dallas, Chicago, San Antonio, Austin, Arizona, the San Francisco Bay Area, Sacramento and Fresno.

Those newscasts will be replaced by existing local community affairs shows or network programming, but will be ready to interrupt programming to report breaking news.

For the time being, the stations will continue to broadcast Sunday newscasts.

According to a source, some on-air talent at the NY station have been offered buyouts with a Monday, April 27 deadline.

Names of those who lost their jobs – from behind and in front of the cameras – are trickling in. Among them, some who have worked at the company for two decades, like Univision 23’s reporter/anchor Sonia Parissos and Washington, D.C. affiliate correspondent Fernando Pizarro.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

Hoy cierro un ciclo de mi vida. Por motivos ajenos a mi, hasta hoy fui parte de Univision 23. 6 premios Emmy y múltiples reconocimientos, avalan lo que fueron 23 años de trabajo en Univision donde nací como profesional . Hoy, 23 años más tarde, me voy satisfecha de haber hecho una carrera integra. Dios me cumplió el sueño hace justo un año de ser presentadora del noticiero. Asi que me voy complacida de haber hecho mi trabajo con todo el respeto y de la manera mas impecable que ustedes se merecen. Me dedicaré a terminar mi próximo proyecto de vida, en su momento les contaré. Entre tanto, si Dios decide ponerme frente a una cámara de nuevo, lo hará. El, es el verdadero dueño del letrero. Solo me resta agradecerle a la cadena Univisión y a Univision 23 por todas las oportunidades respaldo que me dieron durante todos estos años. A ustedes gracias por el apoyo el cariño y la sintonía durante los fines de semana. Los invito a que sigan conectados con el 23 donde dejé compañeros que son como familia . Hasta pronto.

A post shared by Sonia Parissos-Sanchez (@soniaparissos) on Apr 23, 2020 at 5:19pm PDT


Univision’s sports division will be hard hit, since all sporting events have been canceled until further notice.

In his memo, Sadusky wrote the company would be implementing a temporary furlough program that would require some employees to take unpaid time off from one to four weeks. “Others will be furloughed until operations normalize.”

You can read Sadusky’s entire email on Forbes.

Filed Under: People Tagged With: Univision

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Vick the Realtor says

    April 25, 2020 at 8:12 PM

    So, outer Sadusky doing the crappy laundry for incoming Davis…what a sweet deal, typical Univision, using Covid as the perfect scape goat.
    And BTW, did the cleaning include the bunch of imbecile “leaders” and their old and new minions that have crashed that company to hell, since 2010?

  2. Gavin Martin says

    April 25, 2020 at 10:07 PM

    Wow, the tides have turned on Univision, and now what Telemundo suffered now it’s you guys. I tell you the Eentravision crisis was the precursor to what was gonna happen with Univision. Wow, Telemundo is gonna be great just one more hit Univision crumbles. Wow that all it affiliates that have weekend news no Saturday Weekend Shows. Just about all affiliates have in-market rival Telemundo affiliates with weekend newscast with the exception of Sacramento, Fresno, and I guess Austin (I don’t think they have a weekend show). Yeah I saw the Univision Friday newscast even Jorge and ilia Calderon look dismal on air not that they report the news but their chemistry just wasn’t the mood wasn’t good.

  3. Mari says

    April 26, 2020 at 7:50 PM

    Wow Pizarro is gone too?! I do not watch univision, but know he had been there a long time.

  4. Gastón says

    April 26, 2020 at 9:12 PM

    Please fire Andrea Gonzalez from evening news she doesn’t deserve that position ..she is ilegal here

    • Mike says

      April 26, 2020 at 11:27 PM

      She has a work visa. Just like many other foreign-born news personalities working in the U.S.

      • COMMUNITY LEADER says

        April 27, 2020 at 12:37 PM

        Andrea Gonzalez is not fit for that position. whether she has a work visa or NOT she doesn’t transmit that connection with the community.
        Leon is a RICH little kid from MEXICO CITY who only cares about been on TV, his english articles but he doesn’t care about the community he used his “LA MESA” segment to write a book. I wonder if he got permission from all those people who sat with him to put their stories on paper. The old anchors were more involved with the community but these anchors don’t even make it to community events. It’s a shame where is the “UNIVISION CONTIGO” when they are cancelling weekend newscast. I am moving to TELEMUNDO.

  5. Sergio Terreros says

    April 27, 2020 at 7:22 AM

    I deal with Univision all the time and they seem not realizing they are not “Univision” from 10 years ago, not feeling sorry for them.

  6. Miguel says

    April 27, 2020 at 8:40 PM

    They should take out some idiots on the executive level…stupid lawyer Niza Motola is one of them…just fkng people off…

  7. Gastón says

    April 27, 2020 at 10:44 PM

    They should lay off the lady with the show of sex talking on Friday night’s , its not good for are audiences because it’s not necessary we all already now what’s the answer unless you didn’t go school…come on men

  8. Anthony says

    April 30, 2020 at 8:53 AM

    If the COVID-19 pandemic is to blame, then we can expect similar announcements from Telemundo, NBC, ABC, CBS, FOX…etc.

  9. Eyes of the Beholder says

    April 30, 2020 at 12:59 PM

    This is a cop out for UNIVISION blaming the layoffs on Covid 19.
    The company has been going under for sometime already.
    The infrastructure of the company has been lost to Telemundo.
    UNIVISION 41 is unwatchable they are only reporting what they want the viewers to see and believe is no wonder the ratings have gone down the tubes.
    People are working hard during these hard times and this is how you repay your employees no wonder why they have jump ship.
    Dump your radio division that has only giving no value besides negative revenue.

  10. Gastón says

    April 30, 2020 at 11:40 PM

    Www Verónica villafañe está para chuparse los dedos a ella no me la descansen porfa , pero todos los demás si como la Dra del sexo los viernes en la noche ,esa si porque su show no sirve para la comunidad hispana pero allá ustedes..por eso estamos como estamos sin una mejor programa de este canal 34 de los Ángeles.

Primary Sidebar

Veronica Villafañe, Editor & Publisher

Emmy award-winning journalist and former president of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ). Currently a reporter for Voice of America, she has worked as an on-air reporter, anchor, writer and producer for Spanish and English-language TV, print and online media, including Univision, Telemundo, Fox 11 News in L.A. and the San Jose Mercury News.

Hispanic media and entertainment contributor to Forbes.

Full bio here
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Veronica Villafañe, Editor & Publisher

Emmy award-winning journalist and former president of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ). Currently a reporter for Voice of America, she has worked as an on-air reporter, anchor, writer and producer for Spanish and English-language TV, print and online media, including Univision, Telemundo, Fox 11 News in L.A. and the San Jose Mercury News.

Hispanic media and entertainment contributor to Forbes.

Full bio here
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