Pacifica Pays Severance To Laid-Off Employees

Pacifica Foundation Radio has announced the payment of severance obligations to employees laid off in August of 2013 due to financial difficulties at Pacifica's flagship New York City non-com WBAI 99.5 FM.

WBAI says its latest  troubles started after it was ejected from its headquarters in downtown New York City by Hurricane Sandy and relocated to Brooklyn, New York have been extensively covered in the New York City media.

Despite a herculean fundraising campaign in the spring of 2013, Pacifica says the station was not able to recover from the loss of over a half a million dollars in income from the wrecked pledge drive in the winter of 2012 and several months of homelessness that ensued after the station could not return to its office and studio facilities. In July of 2013, it was forced to announce that the majority of its employees would have to be laid off due to the inability to pay them and the station would maintain with a skeleton-level crew.

Employee medical benefits have been retained for the past year, but the station has been unable to fully meet severance pay agreements for many employees who had been with WBAI for years, a painful situation for them, the station and the entire radio network.

Executive director Summer Reese comments "It is with a great sense of relief that I can announce finally today that all severance obligations have been met and I sincerely thank the current and former employees of WBAI and the SAG-AFTRA bargaining unit for their patience as we worked through this troubling situation".