Tribune Co. employees get seat at bankruptcy table

The union representing employees at the Baltimore Sun was given a seat on the committee that will speak for creditors in the Tribune Co. bankruptcy proceedings:

The relatively unusual inclusion of a union on a creditors' committee follows the Guild's success last week in securing Tribune's commitment to pay promised severance and health care benefits to employees who recently accepted a company buy-out.

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Other members of the creditors' committee include major banks and suppliers, including JPMorgan Chase Bank, Merrill Lynch Capital Corp., Deutsche Bank Trust, Warner Bros. Television, Vertis and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp.

Tribune Co. employees have a lot at stake in the bankruptcy given the fact that their pension plan was used as collateral to finance Sam Zell's purchase of the company.