Longtime WDIV sports anchor Bernie Smilovitz said goodbye to the Detroit NBC station on Monday, along with several staffers who took a buyout.
Smilovitz joined the station in 1986.
The station said that in March, “a small group of long-tenured employees were offered a voluntary retirement incentive program. Some of them said yes. Four of them you know from TV: Bernie Smilovitz, Rod Meloni, Paula Tutman and Mara MacDonald. A number of behind-the-scenes employees, equally important to our station, also accepted the offer.”
“At our company, we deeply value the hard work and loyalty of our employees. We work hard to create an exceptional workplace that attracts and retains top talent. We had a unique opportunity to reward a group of long-serving individuals who have been instrumental in building our station’s success over the years,” said Bob Ellis, vice president and general manager of WDIV.