National Post offers all newsroom the chance at a buyout; not all will get one

The National Post, in the wake of similar offers at other Postmedia papers across Canada, is offering its entire newsroom the opportunity to apply for a buyout. According to J-Source, not everyone applying will receive such a payout. The employees have until Friday to decide.

The Torontoist quotes an unnamed National Post source as saying the buyout offers are "just a way of trimming the fat," our source explained; the buyout offers are "designed for people who don't want to stay anyway.""

A Toronto Life blog post says: "We have to note that just because people have been offered buyouts doesn’t mean that the Post‘s newsroom is dead or dying. The CBC offered a really broad buyout package to its staff last year and then winnowed down the number it would actually pay out."

As one commenter, Peter Rehak, said in response to the J-Source post:

Having been through these buyout situations, the practice is to offer buyouts to everyone. Having read the NatPost memo, it is clear that employees have to apply and can be turned down. Thus, the paper will keep the ones they want.

Is this nice? No, it isn't. It happens in all industries but when it happens in the media, it gets a lot more publicity.