New York Times to close distribution unit, cut 530 jobs

03 December 2008

The New York Times Co will close its distribution unit in New York by January 2009 and lay off around 530 employees, the company said in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The closure of the City & Suburban unit that delivers The New York Times and other newspapers and magazines to newsstands and retail outlets in the New York metropolitan region is estimated to cost the company up to $53 million in employee severance charges.

The closure was first announced in September. But the company was unable to provide an estimate of the charge at that time. New York Times Co now estimates the planned closure of its New York-area distribution operations to cost $48 million to $53 million.

After the closure, the company plans to distribute The New York Times and its other publications through third-party wholesalers and the company's own drivers.

Also, the company is in negotiations to sell its property that houses the distribution unit, it said.

The closure would also improve the operating results of The New York Times Media Group, raising it roughly by an annual $30 million, the company said in its filing.