German broadcaster RTL will start short-time working for approximately 4,000 employees from May due to the Covid-19 crisis, dpa-AFX reports. The employees have already been informed by the group. The company plans to take advantage of the partial unemployment for 80 percent of its workforce, while discussions are still ongoing as to whether certain departments will be excluded from the measure, in particular the editorial and production operations.
The furlough measures should initially apply for four months. RTL wants to continue to pay the full salary to its employees. Bertelsmann, the owner of RTL, had already introduced short-time work in certain departments. The Covid-19 crisis has led in many cases to a decrease of advertising revenues for companies in the media industry.
