World Wrestling to cut 10 percent of staff
(Are their jobs safe? Photo from WWE's website.)
Sports entertainment company World Wrestling Entertainment Inc. of Stamford, Conn., said today that it will cut 10 percent of its staff as part of a broader cost-cutting plan.
The company behind such television shows as "Friday Night SmackDown" said the staff reduction would occur across all areas of global operations, yielding expected annual savings of $8 million in compensation and benefit costs.
The cuts are part of a broader campaign to reduce costs by $20 million this year through stronger cost controls and other steps. World Wrestling Entertainment expects to record a $3 million restructuring charge against its first-quarter earnings as a result of the move.
Most of the reductions are expected to be accomplished through layoffs in the first quarter, with some cuts coming through attrition, World Wrestling spokesman Robert Zimmerman said. He did not immediately have details on the company's total employment, or the exact number of jobs to be cut.
According to CapitalIQ, World Wrestling has about 570 workers total.
"With these actions, we believe we can execute our key strategic initiatives, including our digital strategy and international expansion, in a more profitable manner," chief executive Linda McMahon said.
Shares of World Wrestling Entertainment fell 18 cents to $10.88 shortly after the opening bell. (AP)
And.....WHO CARES?
Whatcha gonna do when those pythons are runnin' wild all over you!!!
Can you smell what Obama is cooking? A TARP Bailout perhaps?
Whoooo!
Just more top notch news reporting from the Globe,,,
And.....does this mean no more bra and panty matches?
I care Joseph.. I care...I used to be a wrestler.. back then we used to use steel chairs and smash them against our own heads... they called me the flying falcon.
say it isn't so...
Don't worry - those job cuts aren't real anyway.
Oh no
Its such an important part of the American lifestyle. What shall I do?
I wonder if any of the wrestlers will be let go. Too bad I don't follow wrestling anymore. It hasn't been the same since the 80's, 90's, and when The Rock left.
Nah, it's a work.
What does all of this really mean?
Good quality entertainment and a good move for a stock that has very high returns.
The laid off employees better say their prayers and eat their vitamins...BRRRRROOOOTHER!
Hmmm...who cares?? Let's see. They do $500M in revenue with 570 people - not bad. They have a market cap of over $750M and a decent enterprise value/ebitda. What have any of you nay-saying numbnuts created recently that has those numbers, never mind the staying power and influence that the WWE has? Longest running live television show in the HISTORY of television. Don't look down your nose at good business, you bunch of snobs! Business is business.
I noticed that according to the WWE's figures quoted in the story, that in order for them to realize the supposed $8 million in cost savings from a layoff of 10% of its workforce, that would put the AVERAGE annual compensation and benefits of its staff at about $130,000 a year. Does anyone else think that sounds unusually high and perhaps an indication that, like many publicly traded companies, the WWE is claiming greater cost savings than are realistic from these layoffs to try to gin up its stock price?!
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