It looks like even beloved Muppet characters Bert and Ernie aren't safe in this economic chaos, as Sesame Workshop, the non-profit producer of Sesame Street, announced Wednesday it is laying off one-fifth of its 355-member workforce.

Declaring it is "not immune to the unprecedented challenges of today's economic environment," the company pronounced a need "to operate with fewer resources in order to achieve our strategic priorities." The statement reiterated the organization's mission "of helping children reach their highest potential here and around the globe."

According to the Financial Times, Sesame Street was pummeled just as hard as Main Street by the collapse of Wall Street. Why? Because some of the non-profit's biggest program funding came from fallen giants Merrill Lynch and Bear Stearns. The Workshop's investment portfolio suffered a $9.27-million loss in 2008, while net assets tumbled by $6.7 million.

Although there has been no shortage of heart-wrenching reports of joblessness that have resulted from the economic crisis, this is truly humbling news when you consider what a difference Sesame Street--and all its colorful characters--has made in the lives of the 120 million children it has reached throughout its 40-year history. Let's hope this literacy-building organization will be able to weather this storm and keep on teaching children their ABCs for a long to come.

Flickr photo courtesy of space.Boy, under Creative Commons license.