MONTREAL – Quebecor’s print subsidiary Sun Media Corp. announced Tuesday it is cutting 360 jobs and closing 11 publications across Canada as part of a strategic restructuring.
The closing of eight community newspapers and three free urban dailies is expected to save the company approximately $55 million annually. The newspapers, some of which have already ceased publication, include: L’Action Régionale in Montérégie, Le Progrès de Bellechasse and Le Magazine Saint-Lambert in Québec; The Lindsay Daily Post and The Midland Free Press in Ontario; The Lac du Bonnet Leader and The Beausejour Review in Manitoba; and The Meadow Lake Progress in Saskatchewan.
The company said it is closing three of its 24 Hours newspapers in Ottawa, Calgary and Edmonton as part of a decision to maintain a single urban newspaper in each major market, except Montreal and Toronto.
While she described the job cuts as “regrettable,” Sun Media COO Julie Tremblay maintained the cuts were necessary for the company to remain competitive in an industry that has seen print advertising revenues decimated over the last several years.
“In recent years, the print media industry has been going through an unprecedented transformation such as it has never seen before,” Tremblay said in a statement.
“The management decisions we are making are difficult and highly regrettable, particularly the job cuts. However, the downsizing is necessary to maintain a strong positioning for our news media outlets on all platforms, and more broadly to secure our Corporation’s future success in an industry that is being revolutionized by the advent of digital.”
As more young readers continue to get their information exclusively from digital sources, Tremblay added that Sun Media is making investments and expanding “high-potential” newspapers and publications across all platforms to better meet readers’ and advertisers’ needs.
In other company news, Sun Media also announced today it has appointed Wendy Metcalfe as the new editor-in-chief of The Toronto Sun. Metcalfe begins her new post July 29.
Today’s cuts come less than a year after the company eliminated 500 jobs and closed two production facilities in November 2012. Sun Media currently publishes 36 daily newspapers, three free dailies, and almost 200 community newspapers.
