CBC/Radio-Canada says it will consider “all possible measures” to manage its financial pressures, following criticism from current and former journalists that the public broadcaster wasn’t considering cuts to executive bonuses as it looks for $125 million in savings.
The public broadcaster announced last week that it would eliminate 800 positions as part of that cost-cutting, amounting to about 10% of its workforce, and reduce its English and French programming budgets, including $40 million in independent production commissions and program acquisitions.
An appearance by President & CEO Catherine Tait on The National fueled further outrage when she refused to clarify whether cutting executive compensation was being considered, as chief correspondent Adrienne Arsenault touted data from the Canadian Taxpayers Federation indicating that in 2022, the CBC paid out more than $16 million in bonuses.
CBC/Radio-Canada released a statement late Friday signed by its senior executive team, including Tait; Miguel Baz, Vice-President, Legal Services, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary; Daniel Boudreau, Executive Vice-President, Technology & Infrastructure; Marco Dubé, Chief Transformation Officer and Executive Vice-President, People & Culture; Claude Galipeau, Executive Vice-President, Corporate Development; Dany Meloul, Interim Executive Vice-President, Radio-Canada; Carol Najm, Vice-President and Chief Financial Officer; and Barbara Williams, Executive Vice-President, CBC.
“We are aware of the concerns that have been expressed following the announcement of cuts at CBC/Radio-Canada, as well as questions about remuneration, particularly senior executive compensation tied to performance,” the statement reads. “To be clear, all possible measures are being considered in the context of managing our financial pressures in the months ahead, including senior executive compensation.”
“We are committed to minimizing the effect of cuts on our programs and services to Canadians and on our workforce,” it continued.
Following last week’s announcement, Tait has been summoned to testify before the House of Commons heritage committee. A date has yet to be set.
The Canadian Media Guild (CMG), which has completed four weeks of negotiations with the public broadcaster toward a new collective agreement, said last week that the announced job cuts and unfilled vacancies will inevitably lead to workload issues for those left.
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