“One particularly challenging area in this period has been production, as we’ve unfortunately had to pause most of our TV and film productions to protect the health and safety of our cast, crew and communities,” ViacomCBS president and CEO Bob Bakish said in a message to staff. “This, in turn, has put at risk the livelihoods of our colleagues who help bring these stories to life.”
At the same time, ViacomCBS also announced it was launching an employee matching gifts program, first in the U.S. and U.K., before expanding the program to other regions. As part of the push to encourage company-wide participation, ViacomCBS will match up to $1,000 per year of charitable contributions from full-time employees at the vice president level and below.
The shutdown in production during the public health crisis has resulted in the loss of at least 170,000 jobs. That doesn’t take into account the job losses in related industries, with talent agencies, theme parks, exhibitors, and studios all handing out pink slips while the crisis grinds business to a standstill.
“In these uncertain times, giving back and supporting the well-being of our families, communities, and ourselves is more important than ever,” Bakish wrote. “And I couldn’t be prouder of how our company has come together to provide relief and support to those who need it.”
In his note, Bakish noted that ViacomCBS has been deploying its channels and social media accounts to thank first responders and to encourage consumers to social distance.
ViacomCBS isn’t the only media company to support relief efforts.
On March 20, Netflix unveiled a $100 million fund, which will go to the streamers' unemployed crewmembers globally as well as third parties like SAG-AFTRA's COVID-19 Relief Fund, the MPTF's Emergency Relief Fund and The Actors Fund's Entertainment Assistance Program.
A week later, WarnerMedia launched its own $100 million relief effort for out-of-work crewmembers. And on April 2, Sony said it would create a $100 million relief fund that it would divide among "frontline" medical efforts, "support for children and educators who must now work remotely, and support for members of the creative community." Comcast has also pledged $500 million to help workers impacted by coronavirus.
Below is Bakish’s memo in full:
"Team,
As you know, COVID-19 has had an unprecedented effect on our industry, and, our company has responded in a multitude of ways to deal with the crisis. This includes pivoting largely to work from home, putting new employee assistance programs in place, changing our approach to live production, using our media and brands to support consumers and much more. Today, I wanted to give you an update on some of the more recent developments.
One particularly challenging area in this period has been production, as we’ve unfortunately had to pause most of our TV and film productions to protect the health and safety of our cast, crew and communities. This, in turn, has put at risk the livelihoods of our colleagues who help bring these stories to life. In an effort to help this community, our company has already committed $100 million to help provide support to those impacted by COVID-19, including, of course, the non-staff employees on ViacomCBS productions whose operations have been affected. These funds will also support grants by the Motion Picture & Television Fund and The Actors Fund, as well as contributions to charitable organizations.
In addition, our brands continue to support our audiences and communities, too. The latest example of this came this week when we joined the world in acknowledging the incredible work of healthcare workers and first responders across all of our ViacomCBS linear channels and social accounts with #AloneTogether Thanks First Responders spots. These spots join a host of campaigns already underway, including: a sports-focused campaign recently launched by CBS Sports and the NFL called #InThisTogether and #StayHomeStayStrong; Nickelodeon used their #KidsTogether special to raise funds and awareness for charities focused on the needs of children and first responders, and BET is producing a relief effort special, Saving Our Selves, to raise funds for communities of color most impacted; Comedy Central’s live-streamed comedy sets to raise funds for LaughAid Covid-19 Relief Fund; and our just announced The One World: Together at Home event in partnership with the World Health Organization and Global Citizen across our ViacomCBS networks. In this time of crisis, it is important that we use our media to support our consumers globally. And this is something we will continue to look to do.
As we look for other ways to support our communities, we’ll also be officially launching the new ViacomCBS Employee Matching Gifts Program in the coming weeks. Beginning in the US and UK – and expanding to other regions in the future – ViacomCBS will match up to $1,000 per year of charitable contributions from full-time employees Vice President and below. Please stay tuned for a follow-up email with details about how you can participate. In the interim, if you’re looking for ways to give back at an individual level, we’ve posted a number of virtual volunteering opportunities on the COVID-19 resource pages of the legacy Viacom and CBS intranets, Greenroom and CBS & You. And know that we will be updating these sites with new information and resources as we continue to work with our partners on other initiatives. So please stay tuned.
In these uncertain times, giving back and supporting the well-being of our families, communities, and ourselves is more important than ever. And I couldn’t be prouder of how our company has come together to provide relief and support to those who need it.
Stay well,
Bob"
ViacomCBS earlier warned the novel coronavirus pandemic would have a "material" impact on its financial results as it planned "cost savings initiatives" to offset expected revenue losses. That overall impact includes production delays in television and filmed entertainment programming.
That COVID-19 impact followed CBS Corp. and Viacom late last year, recombining to create ViacomCBS, which came 14 years after Sumner Redstone split his entertainment empire in two with the idea of having two focused companies. The Redstone family continues to control the combined firm.
More Nick: Nickelodeon Launches #KidsTogether--A Global Prosocial Initiative to Help Kids and Families Stay Informed and Engaged With Activities; Noggin to be Offered Free to Kids in Need in Partnership with National Head Start Association and First Book
Additional sources: Deadline, The Hollywood Reporter.
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