By: Joe Strupp The Kansas City Star is the latest mid-sized metro to offer buyouts, telling readers today that employees with 20 years of "uninterrupted service" can take the offer that gives 20 weeks? pay.
"The voluntary program will be limited to fewer than 4 percent of The Star's nearly 1,400 employees and will not have a minimum job-reduction target," the paper reported, citing Publisher Mac Tully.
Eligible employees have until Dec. 19 to take the deal, with their last day of work set for Jan. 11, 2008. The paper added that "an unspecified limit will be placed on the number of departures in each division of the paper so that no one division is unfairly affected."
"The Star will consider business needs and continuity of operations first,? Tully wrote in a staff memo. ?Then, if all things are equal, employees with greater continuous employment with the company will be awarded program participation over someone with less tenure.?
Tully stressed that the paper would not turn to layoffs if the buyouts do not result in enough employees leaving, the paper reported. ?However,? he wrote, ?this does not preclude the possibility of future severance programs as The Star continues to look for operating efficiencies.?
In an effort to explain to readers the economic factors leading to the buyouts, the paper stated, "Many newspapers, including The Star are attracting a record number of consumers to its news and advertising content. But most of those new readers are coming through the Web, while readership and advertising revenue from the core daily newspaper continue to soften."
Specifically, the Star admitted that parent company McClatchy "has suffered sharp declines in revenue at its California and Florida newspapers, where local real estate markets are under pressure."
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