NEW YORK, March 20 (Reuters) - Workers from 12 newspapers that are being sold by McClatchy Co. (MNI.N: Quote, Profile, Research) are pressing ahead with efforts to acquire the papers, which include The Philadelphia Inquirer and San Jose Mercury News, union representatives said on Monday.
The newspapers were part of McClatchy Co.'s $4.5 billion deal earlier this month to buy Knight Ridder Inc. (KRI.N: Quote, Profile, Research). To help finance the deal, McClatchy is selling 12 of the 32 Knight Ridder daily newspapers it acquired.
Union representatives from those papers on Monday released a statement that said workers had an "unprecedented opportunity to have a direct voice" in outcome of the sale by joining with buyout firm The Yucaipa Companies to create an employee-owned company.
"Employee-ownership offers us a chance to create a place where employees want to work and invest," said the statement from the Newspaper Guild-CWA. The statement was adopted during a meeting on March 18.
It added that "a partnership with The Yucaipa Companies will allow us to reach our greatest potential as an innovative media company" and said it was working with Yucaipa "to buy and improve" the papers.
Yucaipa is a Los Angeles -based investment firm owned by billionaire grocery magnate Ron Burkle.
The union and Yucaipa teamed up in February to consider the purchase of some of the Knight Ridder papers.
Besides interest from employees, the papers are also expected to catch the attention of private equity groups and other publishers.
