N.B.A. Lays Off 11 Percent of Workers

[High_Gravity]

N.B.A. Lays Off 11 Percent of Workers

More than 100 N.B.A. employees were laid off this week, heightening the sense of economic distress as the league’s owners and players haggle over a new labor agreement.

All told, 114 positions — 11 percent of the league’s work force — were eliminated, primarily in New York and New Jersey, from nearly every division, including marketing, community relations, player programs, broadcasting and information technology. Most employees received the news Wednesday or Thursday.

The layoffs came two weeks after the N.B.A. locked out its players and froze operations. League officials said the two events were unrelated, although they were clearly intertwined, with the N.B.A. claiming annual losses of $300 million and searching for cost savings.

“The layoffs are not a direct result of the lockout but rather a response to the same underlying issue — that is, the league’s expenses far outpace our revenues,” the N.B.A. spokesman Mike Bass said.

The layoffs were framed as part of a broader effort to cut expenses by $50 million in all areas of the business. The cuts would have been made irrespective of the lockout, Bass said, and there are no plans to rehire the laid-off employees when the dispute is over. Although the league declined to offer specifics, the layoffs included a number of senior-level executives. All of the affected employees were offered severance packages.

Adam Silver, the N.B.A.’s deputy commissioner, informed owners of the cuts in a memo, a copy of which was obtained by The New York Times. He called the layoffs “part of our larger efforts to restructure our operations and create a long-term sustainable business that is well-positioned for future growth.”

The league has been retrenching since the onset of the recession in 2008 — reducing its work force, consolidating international offices and turning over digital operations to Turner Broadcasting.

Even before this week’s layoffs, the N.B.A. had eliminated 275 positions at the team and league level since October 2008. That month, Commissioner David Stern, citing a “wobbly” economy, announced the elimination of 80 jobs, about 9 percent of the league’s domestic work force at the time. That year, the N.B.A. handed management of its digital properties — including its Web site and television station — to Turner Broadcasting, and moved most of the operations to Atlanta.

More recently, the N.B.A. consolidated its overseas operations, shutting down offices in Paris and Tokyo. It is conducting all European business from London and its Asian business from Hong Kong.

Later this summer, the N.B.A. plans to shut down its Secaucus, N.J., studio, where the draft lottery is staged each year. The league has not identified a new home for the lottery, but it will likely be held at an ESPN or ABC studio in Manhattan. Commercial shoots and other programming that had been done in Secaucus will be moved to Atlanta.

As the lockout enters its third week, some teams have begun quietly shedding employees. The Charlotte Bobcats recently laid off at least seven people, including their radio play-by-play announcer, Scott Lauer, according to The Associated Press. The Detroit Pistons let go of 15 people, The A.P. reported.

The Los Angeles Lakers, one of the league’s richest franchises, have laid off most of their training staff, their longtime equipment manager and their assistant general manager.

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/15/s...ff-11-percent-of-staff.html?src=me&ref=sports

 

[random3434]

In other news, Kobe, Lebron and Dirk go on Food Stamps.

 

[Article 15]

I'm thinking this isn't the last of the layoffs.....