Paramount CEO Warns About Upcoming Lay-Offs

(RTTNews) - Paramount Global (PARA) CEO Bob Bakish said on Thursday that as a part of the company's plan to become a "leaner company", it would lay off employees in the upcoming months.

In a memo to the employees, the CEO explained, "Our priority is to drive earnings growth. And we'll get there by growing our revenue while closely managing costs — a balance that will require every team, division and brand to be aligned."

He further added, "Where possible, we'll look to expand our shared services model as we streamline operations. As it has over the past few years, this does mean we will continue to reduce our workforce globally."

The company did not further disclose the details about how many employees would be laid off.

Bakish acknowledged that the company is going through a tumultuous time due to a soft market, economic volatility, and strikes by Hollywood writers and actors that stymied studio production for much of the summer.

Recently, David Ellison owned Skydance Media's speculated plan to privatize Paramount Global has been gaining media attention. The rumor stemmed from a preliminary offer made by Ellison to National Amusements Inc., the holding company of Paramount.

Responding to the speculations, Bakish said, "It's no surprise that Paramount remains a topic of speculation. We're a storied public company in a closely followed industry." He further added, "But I have always believed the best thing we can do is concentrate on what we can control — execution".

Similarly, other media companies such as The Los Angeles Times, Business Insider and Sports Illustrated have announced layoffs recently.