The largest Hungarian media trust in Romania will lay off approximately 70% of its employees starting January 1, writes the Hungarian-language portal Transtelex.ro.

The group of companies run by the Transylvanian Médiatér Association, through which Budapest funds the Hungarian press in Transylvania, will not only lay off employees of print publications, but also online publications and radio stations.

The largest taxpayer-funded Hungarian media trust, Prima Press Kft. from Székelyudvarhel, announced more than two weeks ago that it is suspending the publication and distribution of its printed products – Krónika, Székelyhon, Székely Hírmondó, Heti Hirdető, Nőileg. December 30, 2022

At the same time, the media holding manages more than 30 newspapers and radio stations in Transylvania.

“There is no guarantee that 70% of the layoffs will not be followed by new layoffs next year. We were only told that there will be a reorganization of the media product. But the truth is that the Hungarian media holding in Transylvania collapsed. In the new conditions, it will be very difficult to do quality journalistic work,” explained a Transtelex source on condition of anonymity.

Laszlo Nemeš, managing director of Prima Press Kft., told Transtelex that it has not yet been decided how many employees will be laid off from January 1. “70% is not an exact number, just an order of magnitude. Reorganization is now underway. But the explanation for the large number of layoffs is that we are liquidating our newspaper network with the discontinuation of print editions,” he said.

László Nemes ended the conversation when he was asked for details about the fired journalists, not just the leakers.

“Our announcement two weeks ago is clear. We are ceasing printing and reorganizing the group of companies. I am not in a position to make another statement now because there is no final position,” said the managing director of Prima Press Kft.

“We have known about the layoffs for more than two weeks. But we did not expect that so many people would go. And the reason is simply that there is no money,” an employee of the media trust told Transtelex.

In recent years, the Transylvania Media Association has received significant funding from the Hungarian government. According to atlatszo.ro, by the middle of last year, the proposed grants amounted to 20 million euros.