McClatchy to Cut 10% of Staff

Newspaper publisher McClatchy (MNI Quote) plans to reduce its work force by about 10%, or roughly 1,400 positions, in order to get a better handle on its costs.

McClatchy said the job cuts will be implemented through attrition and voluntary and involuntary measures.

"We have been transitioning steadily and successfully from a traditional newspaper company to an integrated multimedia company for some time," said McClatchy CEO Gary Pruitt, in a prepared statement Monday. "The effects of the current national economic downturn -- particularly in real estate, auto and employment advertising -- make it essential that we move faster now to realign our work force and make our operations more efficient. I'm sorry this requires the painful announcement we are making today, but we're taking this action to help ensure a healthy future for our company."

The moves will produce annual savings of about $70 million from staff reductions. McClatchy plans to reduce overall costs by $95 million to $100 million over the next four quarters.

Shares of McClatchy were little changed recently, down 2 cents at $8.13.