CBC/Radio-Canada will be cutting roughly 600 jobs and 200 vacant roles, and reduce its programming spend by $40 million to save $125 million in costs in the 2024-25 fiscal year.

Citing economic factors like declining ad revenue and rising production costs, as well as a forecasted reduction in federal funding in a news release on Monday (Dec. 4), the pubcaster said about 250 positions will be cut from CBC and Radio-Canada, respectively, with some reductions beginning immediately, while others will take effect over the next 12 months. The cuts will affect both union and non-union positions.

Cuts to programming will include original commissions and acquisitions, added the release, noting that it “will result in reduced renewals and acquisitions, fewer new television series and episodes of existing shows, as well as fewer digital original series.”

“CBC/Radio-Canada is not immune to the upheaval facing the Canadian media industry. We’ve successfully managed serious structural declines in our business for many years, but we no longer have the flexibility to do so without reductions,” said president and CEO Catherine Tait in a statement. “We understand how concerning this is to the people affected and to the Canadians who depend on our programs and services. We will have more details in the months ahead, but we are doing everything we can to minimize the impact of these measures.”

CBC/Radio-Canada said in its annual report its workforce included 6,597 permanent employees as of March 31, the end of its 2022-23 fiscal year. In its Q2 2023-24 results, the pubcaster said its revenue fell by 5.4% year-over-year, coming to $106.2 million from $112.3 million in the previous Q2, which was attributed to a “softer TV advertising market” and reduced income from content sales.

This article originally appeared in Playback