• by Sara Guaglione , July 1, 2016

IBT Media is undergoing significant changes before the Independence Day weekend. The company announced “a corporate restructuring” yesterday afternoon, followed by a huge round of layoffs of roughly 30-40 employees at International Business Times, according to multiple sources. Also cut were five editorial staffers at Medical Daily, and "at least" 11 non-editorial staffers from IBT Media as a whole, according to Politico.

A handful of layoffs at Newsweek will be announced later today, according to Recode.

IBT Media announced that it will spin off Newsweek “into a separate operational entity.” Some sources speculate that the move signals IBT’s intentions to sell Newsweek.

Jim Impoco, Newsweek's global editor in chief, will continue to lead the publication.

Other IBT Media brands, including the International Business Times, Medical Daily, iDigitalTimes, Fashion Times, and the Latin Times, will be moved into “a more integrated structure which will allow for both operational and editorial efficiencies,” according to the company.

Dayan Candappa will continue as the global editor in chief of the International Business Times. Marc Perton, previously editorial director of tech at IBT Media, will assume editorial oversight for Medical Daily, iDigitalTimes, Fashion Times, and the Latin Times.

"This restructuring will allow us to continue to support the growth of IBT Media and Newsweek," stated Etienne Uzac, CEO of IBT Media. "Our overall plan, which includes some staff downsizing, is part of an overall plan to drive efficiencies throughout the company.”

According to Politico,  Candappa called a staff meeting of International Business Times around 3 p.m. yesterday and told staff the layoff decision was financially driven -- the verticals that were not bringing in traffic were cut.

In January, International Business Times' newsroom consisted of 85 staffers, according to Politico. Now there are only 23. 

Forbes reports that the pub's media, tech, business and international desk were essentially eliminated, as well as its graphics team and its copy desk. Only the entertainment, sports and breaking news desks were left untouched.

If employees do not find a job within two weeks, IBTimes will give them one week’s severance for every year at the company, Politico reports.

IBTimes’ former global editor-in-chief Peter Goodman left the company in March, after the company failed to pay its employees on time. At the time, Uzac reassured staffers that the payment problems did not reflect financial issues.

Around the same time, IBT Media made the decision to drop Newsweek’s paywall, and the Web site moved to a premium content model.