Union concessions expected to keep N.J.’s largest newspaper publishing

The unions negotiating New Jersey’s largest newspaper say they’re close to an agreement with The Star-Ledger.

Management of the Newark-based paper threatened last month to shut it down by the end of the year if the unions did not make major concessions.

More than 300 printers, mailers and machinists have negotiated for months with the paper’s management.

Union spokesman Ed Shown says a final agreement is near that will avoid layoffs.

“There’ll be a restructuring of the amount of people working in the workplace. Buyouts will be in the mix, and it should make everybody pretty happy with the end result,” he said Monday.

Newsroom employees are not unionized. WHYY could not reach the paper’s publisher.

But, in another sign that it’s expecting a permanently smaller future, The Star-Ledger has also put its headquarters in Newark up for sale.