25% of newspaper left blank in protest over job cuts

Readers of Belgian newspaper L'Avenir found large gaps on the pages on Wednesday, as a quarter of the title's content was removed in protest at plans to cut a quarter of staff.

Most of the paper's front page was left blank, some inside articles were missing and the TV listings were incomplete across the French-language publisher's nine local editions.

A quarter of articles will remain missing in the paper until Friday, after management announced to staff in a meeting on Tuesday that the equivalent of 60 full-time positions would be cut, out of a total workforce of 280.

Bosses said the "redeployment plan" aimed to guarantee the publisher's future survival in the context of widespread decline in print newspaper sales.

The job losses will affect both the editorial and commercial departments. A formal consultation period is due to begin later this week.

Staff are likely to announce strike action on Thursday, said Thierry Couvreur, CNE union rep in the L'Avenir newsroom.