This Morning and Good Morning Britain are among the shows facing pay freezes as job losses, as execs try to offset the financial damage caused by poor ratings, it has been reported. ITV is said to have taken drastic measures to cut costs at some of the channel's biggest shows after a huge slump in viewers has caused panic among bosses. Shorter three-month contracts could be pushed instead of long term deals for staff, while freelancers are to be cut to try to streamline the running of daytime TV.
It's also thought the annual summer do, which sees the biggest stars let their hair down on company cash, could be axed. Town Hall meetings have been held at ITV, with daytime chief Emma Gormley reportedly showing staff a graph that made it clear the rapid decline in ratings is in stark contrast to the rise in viewers of streamers like Netflix and Amazon Prime. The cost of the re-launch of This Morning has made news of cuts 'hard to stomach' ( Image: Ken McKay/ITV/REX/Shutterstock) As reported by The Sun , a source said: "ITV is really tightening their belt.
There have been concerns for months at the top but now that it’s trickled down to the shop floor it feels very depressing. A lot of staff are being put on three-month contracts, probably so they can get rid of people easily." They added that there are pay freezes already in place, while new talent is on hold to keep "costs down".
But despite ITV's difficult time, bosses are holding out hope that viewers will start turning in ag.