In what TVB general manager Stephen Chan Chi-wan termed a "painful decision," the Hong Kong broadcaster on Monday announced a 7% reduction in its workforce, local media reported.The move will eliminate 212 staffers across "all departments and levels."

The majority of redundancies will come from production resources departments, including behind the scenes personnel from wardrobe, set construction, hair and makeup, as well as administrative staff, Chan said in a widely reported statement.

The broadcaster said that it had been adversely affected by the financial crisis and needed to adjust its human resources accordingly. "This is a painful decision. None of us want this to happen, but we still have a responsibility to shareholders, and we are just trying to lessen any adverse effects," said Chan.

Layoffs have been anticipated at TVB since news in early November that the territory's second free-to-air broadcaster Asia Television (ATV) was firing 63 staff. According to ATV VP Kwong Hoi-ying, the layoffs were necessary due to declining advertising revenue.

The TVB move nevertheless brought condemnation, with several trade unions holding small scale demonstrations outside the broadcaster's Television City studio complex.

(Agencies/CRI December 2, 2008)