Warner Bros. plans to outsource jobs
A report says Warner Bros. plans to lay off some studio staffers and outsource jobs to India and Poland to cut costs amid falling entertainment revenues.
Although details of the layoffs at Warner are still to be determined, they are nonetheless expected to affect scores of “back office” workers in management information systems, finance and accounting.
Warner has about 8,000 employees around the world. In 2005, the studio cut about 400 jobs, including about 300 at its lot in Burbank.
Source: LA Times
The following message came from our fair leaders or dictators at WB: Barry Meyer and Alan Horn.: “This was a very difficult decision to make, and one that was not made easily. Despite the fact that the company performed solidly in 2008, this decision reflects changes necessary for stability and growth going forward. The changing entertainment business landscape, shifting consumer demand and the overall state of the economy have affected companies around the world, and Warner Bros. is not immune to these factors.”
I find this message disturbingly unjust and un-American. As it stands 2 out of 5 LA residents do not have enough income to meet their basic needs. Outsourcing degreed/technical positions to India will only help to increase that static, leaving us to question is any job safe from outsourcing in America, today. In these unstable and very dire financial times, the noted message from Meyer and Horn is a slap in the face along with an added burden to the local & state economy which is on the verge of bust.
This past Tuesday, January 20th, the day President Obama was inaugurated was the day they announced the outsourcing plan. Kind of ironic, when last year this time during Obama’s run for election, he stated we need to keep our jobs in America, we need to focus on technology, science and all things that are American – to paraphrase. Well, this executive decision counters the American dream and the hope that this country has future in those very areas were killed on January 20th for me and around 700+ employees. Where I sit, the forecast is grim as I see a trend potentially happening in every company – outsourcing is not an answer to running a company leaner. Outsourcing will kill what this country and the hope that President Obama was elected on taking on stand for and changing – this is just the beginning of a massive snowball effect that will collapse our social structures that we once took for granted. I am reaching out to you in hopes that a story can break, we need to bring awareness now and grab the attention of our communities/groups at the local, state and federal levels to start looking at the un-American business practice of outsourcing. Yes we can protect American jobs/employees from being outsourced not because we cannot compete, it’s strictly a dollar and cents move to save the executive payroll rather than promoting/encouraging innovative thinking within the said organizations. It’s time to tell all the corporate executives, no you can’t justify the decision to outsource in order to keep the company stable and maintain growth going forward - this emergency exit needs to be reviewed and legislated - it’s high time that accountability for decisions takes front and center.