Buyouts Start At Tribune Company, Including LA Times

Tribune Publishing is implementing employee buyouts as it seeks to cut costs amid declining revenues, the company announced Monday.

The voluntary separation packages are being offered to non-union employees with more than one year of service at the embattled publisher, which owns The Los Angeles Times, The Chicago Tribune, The Baltimore Sun and other regional newspapers around the country.

In an internal memo, chief executive Jack Griffin characterized the buyouts as a means of "reducing costs." He wrote, "we must adapt our current cost structure and business model to meet changing times."

The announcement comes amid turmoil at Tribune Publishing related to the recent firing of Austin Beutner as publisher of The Los Angeles Times, a controversial move that has caused a major headache for Tribune as it scrambles to execute a turnaround plan.