La Presse is eliminating 158 jobs – including 102 full-time positions – as it prepares to move to a digital-only format on weekdays. The cuts will take place over the next three months, the company said Thursday.
In a release, the Quebec daily said the cuts are the result of its adoption of a weekday digital-only model beginning Jan. 1, and the “crisis” impacting traditional media. The cuts include unionized, non-unionized and management jobs from all sectors, including 43 newsroom positions.
The publication will have 633 full-time employees after the cuts, with president and publisher Guy Crevier noting it would still have the largest newsroom in Quebec, with 283 full and part-time employees, up from 239 in 2011.
The company said after its 2011 decision to deploy the app-based La Presse+ product, it hired a “significant” number of new employees to meet demand for its print and digital platforms. It said with the move to a single platform, its workforce will return to its 2011 level.
“It is one of the few newsrooms in North America to have increased staffing over the past five years,” said Crevier in a release. “With our 100% digital model during the week, the company now has a viable business model and solid foundations.”
