For Immediate Release: March 21, 2026
On Friday, IBEW broadcast professionals who make CBS News possible learned that the network’s parent company is moving forward with another round of layoffs. This is the second round of cuts since CBS came under Skydance Media’s control.
It was also announced that CBS News Radio, which has served nearly 700 affiliated stations nationwide for nearly a century, will be shut down entirely.
The IBEW is proud of its longstanding partnership with CBS and is deeply troubled to be learning of these developments only now. CBS works because of the skill, dedication, and professionalism of the IBEW technical and production workers who make its broadcasts possible. The IBEW believes that a workforce of this caliber – and partnership of this duration – warrants direct and transparent communication about decisions that affect the livelihoods of its members.
Skydance’s actions raise serious questions about the future of good union jobs in broadcasting. And with Skydance reportedly planning to merge CBS News into CNN following its proposed acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery, lawmakers and regulators must ask whether further consolidation in the broadcast industry will help working people or hurt them.
“Our members and this union deserve to hear about decisions that affect their livelihoods with proper notice, not in headlines the same day they’re being shown the door,” said IBEW International President Kenneth W. Cooper.
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The IBEW represents approximately 887,000 members and retirees who work in a wide variety of fields, including construction, utilities, manufacturing, telecommunications, broadcasting, railroads and government.