Arlene Violet, a talk-radio icon in Rhode Island, has been let go by her station, WHJJ-AM (920) after more than 16 years on the air. Her last day on the air will be tomorrow.

She will be replaced Monday in her 3 to 6 p.m. time slot by a syndicated program featuring conservative commentator Sean Hannity.

Violet, a former Catholic nun and Rhode Island attorney general from 1985 to 1987, announced her departure to her audience on her show this afternoon.

She described it as a business decision on the part of the station, which is part of the Clear Channel Communications, which is in the process of being sold to two private equity groups.

“It’s a fact of life when there’s a change. . . it’s a business decision, they cut to the bottom line,” she said.

In other moves, WHJJ announced that the Quinn & Rose radio show, a conservative syndicated program with Jim Quinn and Rose Somma Tennent, will go into the 9 a.m. to noon slot.

Helen Glover, the former Survivor contestant turned talk show host, will move to the noon to 3 p.m. slot. Howie Barte, who had hosted a WHJJ show from 1 to 3 p.m., has also gotten the axe from the station.

Clear Channel, which owns WHJJ, also owns three other stations in Rhode Island — WHJY-FM, WWBB-FM, and WSNE-FM. The Texas-based corporation, the largest radio broadcaster in the United States, is in the process of being sold to two private equity companies, Thomas Lee Partners LP and Bain Capital Partners LLC.

In a statement released today, Violet said her release was “a business decision” on the part of Clear Channel, and pointed to other layoffs at local Clear Channel stations, including morning show veteran Joannie Edwardsen, who was fired from WSNE-FM last month. In a phone interview,

Violet said station managment told her her job was in jeopardy last month, at the same time Edwardsen was handed her walking papers. “The people who have been here the longest have the highest salary. And they’re cutting from the top,” she said.