Nineteen employees at Talk 1410 were laid off Thursday as the radio station changed formats.
CHUM Radio Vancouver's general manager and vice-president James Stuart announced the all-talk radio station, also known as CFUN-AM, will transition into a sports-only station under the name "Team 1410."
That meant 23 jobs in total were affected, 19 of which - including on-air personalities, managers, sales staff and the program director - were cut.
"It's a bittersweet day for us," Stuart told 24 hours. "Ultimately, the basis was that [Talk 1410] wasn't getting the traction in ratings to sustain it. We believe we've built a strong brand in this city with Team 1040, and this is an opportunity for us to take the franchise and expand it."
Having two "Team" stations means that both Canucks (which will remain on 1040) and Lions (now on 1410) game broadcasts will air live if they overlap.
It also opens the door for increased coverage of international sports such as golf, the NFL and European soccer. The new programming is already on the air.
Stuart said three hosts from Talk 1410 have been offered jobs at Team 1410, but would not say which personalities are in the running.
