TVA Group has announced it’s eliminating 87 primarily unionized jobs, as the Quebecor-owned broadcaster continues to chase profitability. The cuts include both permanent and temporary positions in Montreal, as well as local stations in Trois-Rivières, Sherbrooke Saguenay, and Rimouski.
Quebecor said in a statement Wednesday that the decision comes “as TVA Group’s financial situation continues to deteriorate,” posting cumulative net losses of more than $93 million since January 2022. The company said while restructuring and workforce rationalization plans have partially offset a decline in ad revenue, that decline “is a long-term, industry-wide trend that continues to accelerate.”
“Repeated appeals to government authorities to support the private television industry, at a time when it faces fierce competition from the web giants and CBC/Radio-Canada, have been ignored, most recently in the federal budget,” it continued.
Since 2023, Quebecor has eliminated nearly 800 jobs in its Broadcasting segment, most recently restructuring 30 positions in the television division in May.
Just last week, Quebecor CEO and Acting President Pierre Karl Péladeau blasted the lack of support for broadcasters in the federal budget as the company released its Q3 2025 earnings.
While the company’s Media and Sports and Entertainment segments posted increases of $8.7 million (59.2%) and $3.3 million (28.2%), respectively, in adjusted EBITDA in Q3, TVA Group revenues of $106.2 million in Q3 were down $6.2 million (‑5.5%), and year‑to‑date revenues of $355.3 million, down $30.3 million (‑7.8%).
“Our television industry, our original productions and our news coverage are essential factors for the vitality of our culture, our democracy and our language. They are part of a major economic sector that generates billions of dollars in economic spinoffs and creates thousands of jobs. It is troubling indeed that the federal government is ignoring this social and economic issue—particularly since three senior ministers heading important departments represent Quebec ridings,” Péladeau stated in the layoff announcement. “We would expect them to be more concerned about the challenges we are facing.
As shared in the company’s earnings release, Péladeau specifically takes issue with Budget 2025’s inclusion of an additional $150 million in support for CBC/Radio-Canada, while failing to commit to remove advertising from the public broadcaster’s platforms, or extend the Canadian Journalism Labor Tax Credit to broadcasters.
“We must ask ourselves once again: how much longer will government authorities allow such an important industry to decline? How much longer will CBC/Radio-Canada receive excessive, steadily increasing financial support from the federal government with no strings attached, while competing directly with private broadcasters? How much longer will governments divide journalists, who are all doing essentially the same work for our democracy, into two classes by refusing to extend the journalism labour tax credit to television journalism? The solutions have been detailed time and time again,” he continued. “For TVA Group to remain viable and continue investing in local content and news, governments and the CRTC must take action and implement measures to change the parameters of the ecosystem.”
“It is with great regret that we see our valued contributors leave,” added Louis-Philippe Neveu, Vice President, Operations, News and Sports at TVA Group. “Every day, TVA and its teams do essential work to inform and entertain Quebecers. Unfortunately, the precarious state of the industry, which is having a significant impact on our company’s financial situation, forces us to make difficult but unavoidable choices. I sincerely thank our colleagues for their contributions and commitment.”
The company said it will increase severance pay beyond collective agreement provisions to some permanent employees affected by this round of job cuts, paying laid-off employees compensation for up to 52 weeks.
According to audience data provided by the network, TVA Group’s channels are the most popular in Quebec, with a 42.4% market share in the first nine months of this year, a 1.7-point increase compared with the same period in 2024.
