BBC AXES 83 CARDIFF JOBS
MOVE TO NEW £100M CITY CENTRE HEADQUARTERS PROMPTS CORPORATION TO SLASH SCORES OF POSTS UNDER COST-CUTTING MEASURES
BBC Wales has announced plans to axe 83 posts in its technology, operations and archive teams ahead of its move to a new £100m headquarters in the centre of Cardiff.
The public service broadcaster said the proposals, which it says are designed to simplify ways of working, would result in 18 new roles being created, resulting in an overall reduction of 65 posts.
The move would result in cost savings of almost £2.5m towards the £9m target announced almost two years ago.
It is also proposed that from early 2019, about 35 technical and operations staff at Welsh-language channel S4C will move to the BBC under Tupe legislation in readiness for shared broadcast and playout facilities announced by the two broadcasters last November.
These staff are also expected to be affected by the proposed post closures.
The proposed job losses are in Cardiff.
The majority are not expected to take effect until early 2020 and the broadcaster said it would work closely with the trade unions to reduce the risk of compulsory redundancies.
The BBC said the changes would enable it to respond to a fast-moving media environment by introducing:
Simpler ways of working, harnessing the new technology and facilities at Central Square, which it says is on course to be one of the most technically advanced broadcast centres anywhere in the UK;
A shared playout and technology service for both BBC Wales and S4C, “increasing efficiency” for both broadcasters; and
A transformation of the archive services, enabling production teams to access BBC Wales’ archive at their desktop, resulting in a smaller, specialist archive team.
Rhodri Talfan Davies, director of BBC Wales, said: “The move to Central Square is the biggest transformation project ever undertaken by BBC Wales – and the proposed changes, while extremely difficult, are essential if we’re to ready the organisation for the relocation.
“With such a major investment in new technology systems – including a fully digitised archive – changes were inevitable.
“But I know today’s announcements will cause a good deal of concern, and we will be doing everything possible to support colleagues during this time of change.”
The BBC will start moving around 1,200 staff from its current studio and head office site in Llandaff, Cardiff, into its new headquarters at the Central Square development scheme in the centre of the city from late 2019.