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July 9, 2021 9:39 am  #1


Global Calgary Lays Off 45, Transfers Some Positions To T.O.

It appears Global is centering more and more of its jobs in one place - Toronto. They already produce a Montreal newscast and do some of the weather for stations out of their studios here. Now 45 people who once worked at their Calgary affiliate will soon be seeking new employment, after the company reportedly transferred a slew of positions from the western city back to Toronto in an apparent cost cutting move. 

The story, which is being cited in the Western Standard (a sometimes-controversial Conservative publication, but which appears to have an inside line on this) quotes an internal union memo about the sudden change. 

“Our On-Air Services, Quality Control and On Air Engineering operations in Calgary will be transferring to Toronto, Ontario. The Company estimates the changes will be complete no later than March 31, 2022. The approximate number of employees affected as a result of the change is 45."

Unifor claims the new jobs here will not be union positions. I don't know exactly what "On Air Services" or "Quality Control" do, but I simply can't understand transferring On Air Engineering to a place 3,000 miles away. If something goes wrong in Calgary, how, exactly, do they fix it? It seems to me this is pennywise and pound foolish. 

It's been a tough year for broadcasting jobs, beyond just the pandemic. The Bell bloodbath continues to reverberate on local stations here, and CFRB has not been the same since they cut up to 200 positions at the beginning of February. Now Corus is taking a similar tack. And I'm sure employees at their stations across the country are wondering if they're next.  


Global Calgary chops 45 jobs

 

July 9, 2021 9:53 am  #2


Re: Global Calgary Lays Off 45, Transfers Some Positions To T.O.

I wonder what Izzy Asper would think of all this? Much of the rationale for CanWest was to provide an alternative to Toronto-based media with a system that had production centres in western Canada as well (the West in CanWest is Western Canada, of course, and Asper was based in Winnipeg.)

 

July 9, 2021 10:30 am  #3


Re: Global Calgary Lays Off 45, Transfers Some Positions To T.O.

They are moving Global TV Master Control to Corus Quay in Toronto.

All Global channels currently originate from Calgary, although news production is already mainly centred in Toronto (Barber Green facility).

Corus Quay is one of the largest TV master control facilities in the country with some 50+ specialty channels originating there (including master control for TVO, TFO, Vision TV, AMI, Telelatio + others).

Watch for Corus to sell the Calgary building in 2023

 

 

July 9, 2021 11:12 am  #4


Re: Global Calgary Lays Off 45, Transfers Some Positions To T.O.

Global and TVO have a long history. When Global was originally proposed, the idea was that they would share their transmission network with TVO (then known as OECA) which at the time was only available in Toronto over CICA. The idea was that TVO would broadcast province-wide during the day and Global would broadcast from 5 pm to midnight. I don't know if this every actually happened - if it did it it didn't last for more than a few months after Global's launch in January 1974 (certainly not past Global's near collapse and buyout by new owners  in April) - and TVO had started opening its own repeater network by 1975. 

 

July 10, 2021 11:29 am  #5


Re: Global Calgary Lays Off 45, Transfers Some Positions To T.O.

Hansa wrote:

Global and TVO have a long history. When Global was originally proposed, the idea was that they would share their transmission network with TVO (then known as OECA) which at the time was only available in Toronto over CICA. The idea was that TVO would broadcast province-wide during the day and Global would broadcast from 5 pm to midnight. I don't know if this every actually happened - if it did it it didn't last for more than a few months after Global's launch in January 1974 (certainly not past Global's near collapse and buyout by new owners  in April) - and TVO had started opening its own repeater network by 1975. 

I’ve read that when Global first started, in Ottawa the cable company aired CFCF Montreal on the channel Global was on during the hours Global was off the air.

 

July 11, 2021 1:20 am  #6


Re: Global Calgary Lays Off 45, Transfers Some Positions To T.O.

In Phase wrote:

Watch for Corus to sell the Calgary building in 2023

That's a multi use building. Is there a plan to relocate the radio stations?


RadioWiz & RadioQuiz are NOT the same person. 
RadioWiz & THE Wiz are NOT the same person.

 
 

July 11, 2021 4:12 pm  #7


Re: Global Calgary Lays Off 45, Transfers Some Positions To T.O.

Radiowiz wrote:

In Phase wrote:

Watch for Corus to sell the Calgary building in 2023

That's a multi use building. Is there a plan to relocate the radio stations?

I think he means the studios where Global Calgary is currently at. TV is in a separate building from radio in Calgary.

 

July 12, 2021 9:35 am  #8


Re: Global Calgary Lays Off 45, Transfers Some Positions To T.O.

They don't need big production control rooms anymore.  News operations could be moved in with the "Global News Radio" stations on 17th Avenue SW.  Then the 23rd Street building is basically empty.

 

July 16, 2021 8:23 pm  #9


Re: Global Calgary Lays Off 45, Transfers Some Positions To T.O.

Hansa wrote:

Global and TVO have a long history. When Global was originally proposed, the idea was that they would share their transmission network with TVO (then known as OECA) which at the time was only available in Toronto over CICA. The idea was that TVO would broadcast province-wide during the day and Global would broadcast from 5 pm to midnight. I don't know if this every actually happened - if it did it it didn't last for more than a few months after Global's launch in January 1974 (certainly not past Global's near collapse and buyout by new owners  in April) - and TVO had started opening its own repeater network by 1975. 

Long history???  no, not really.

Global in its original ownership model was tanking by June 1974... not April as you mentioned (well, maybe they were on there way in April). One of the problems they were up against was that they were launching mid-season, and going up against CTV and CBC as well as the US border affiliates which all had established programming and series returning from the holiday break... 

Also, the original transmitter network was not completed at launch...  only Paris, Ont. and Uxbridge transmitters were operational for the January 6th, 1974 sign on/launch.  RCA had delivered the antennas for the other sites, but the tower companies and contractors were not being paid, so they stopped all work for future builds until the invoices for the original work was paid.  All of this work was originally planned for the late summer/fall of 1973.  Engineers didn't discover this until the spring of 1974...  driving out to Cottam, and Oil Springs...  and seeing the antenna and tower sections laying in the field....  Luckily, Global was being carried on many cable tv systems at the time....

TVO's second transmitter site was for Ottawa, and was located at Camp Fortune in Hull, Que. The Camp Fortune site began operation in late 1975. The majority of the TVO transmitter network build out occurred in the early 80s with the launch of the ANIK C3 Ku satellite.


 

Last edited by Glen Warren (July 16, 2021 8:23 pm)