Memo: Layoffs Coming To Sports Illustrated

Job cuts are coming to Sports Illustrated and now we have a rougher idea of how many people are getting cut.

It looks like as many as 16 folks could lose their job. Over the next two weeks, SI staffers will have a chance to volunteer for a buyout. If not enough people raise their hand, layoffs are next.

Here's the memo that just went around the SI offices:

Subject: SI Edit layoff announcement

Sports Illustrated notified the Guild of layoffs at SI Edit today. These are the job categories and numbers the Guild was given:

Senior Editors: up to 1 Associate Editors: up to 3 Writers: up to 3 Photographers: up to 5 Photo Editors: up to 1 Writer-Reporters: up to 3

The "up to" means, according to management, that the final total will depend on the salaries of the volunteers they get. There will be a two-week volunteer period, starting today, during which people in the affected categories may volunteer for severance packages. It is possible that volunteers will still be taken from other job categories or other groups outside Guild jurisdiction.

Normally this announcement would come from management, but since management declined, the Guild is passing on the information we were given. Please contact me or another Guild rep with any questions you may have.

Sincerely,

Jill Jaroff Time Inc. Unit Chair Newspaper Guild of New York

Looks like the number of layoffs will adjust according to who all raises their hands (if higher-salaried writers and editors take buyouts, there will be fewer layoffs, it seems).

In 2008, SI cut 40 jobs. Editor Terry McDonell told the "I don't know what the number will be but I do know that it will be substantially smaller than what we've done in the past." It looks like he was right and that's some bit of good news here.

Know of anyone taking a buyout? Email me.