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Sesame Workshop will “downsize significantly” announced president and CEO Sherrie Rollins Westin on Wednesday in 

The layoffs come about two months after Max said it would stop distributing 

 episodes after 2025 and within a day after more than 200 of its employees 

 that they want to form a union. Cast – like puppeteers – crew and writers are already unionized, said a statement from OPEIU Local 153.

“Amid the changing media and funding landscape, we have made the difficult decision to reduce the size of our organization,” a Sesame Workshop spokesperson wrote in an email to NPR.

Last December, Warner Bros. Discovery, which owns Max, 

 that, after 10 years, it was not renewing its deal to fund new episodes of the iconic children’s series. At the time, the corporation said its priorities had shifted and that 

Sesame Workshop said the layoffs “are necessary to ensure that the Workshop is poised to continue to deliver on its mission for years to come but that does not make the human impact of these reductions any less painful.”

Max is currently airing the 55th season of 

. Sesame Workshop has not announced a new distributor, but said production on its 56th season will begin next month.

Story edited by Jennifer Vanasco and Kristian Monroe.

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The layoffs come after 200 Sesame Workshop employees announced they want to form a union.

Sesame Workshop will ‘downsize significantly’ with layoffs, CEO says

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