Time Inc. CEO Laura Lang cut pay raises for all 8,000 staffers as the company reportedly prepares to lay off up to 700, the New York Post reported.
The publisher of such titles as Entertainment Weekly, People, Sports Illustrated and Time is expected to begin pink-slipping between 500 and 700 employees in early February, just before Time Warner is scheduled to announce its fourth-quarter earnings.
Unnamed sources told the Post that the company wants to cut $100 million in costs by issuing the largest set of layoffs in recent memory. It was not immediately clear which publications would be hit hardest by the layoffs.
“While we are evolving, the publishing business in the short term remains challenged. These are unavoidable facts,” Lang said in a memo to staffers, explaining the decision to cut pay raises. “As we position ourselves for growth in the future we must continue to aggressively manage costs.
“After much thought and discussion, we have decided we must eliminate the annual merit increase in 2013," she added.
Heads of departments traditionally received a pot of money to distribute to their staff members with the average raise being 3 percent.
Time Inc. did not immediately respond to requests from TheWrap for comment.
