UP to 60 full and part-time jobs are under threat after a newspaper announced plans to close its print room.
Workers at the Hartlepool Mail were told yesterday of plans to move printing to its sister paper, the Sunderland Echo.
About 25 full-time jobs in the press room, and a further 35 part-time inserting jobs, are under threat.
The company has begun a 28-day consultation with the workers affected.
Tim Bowdler, chief executive of Johnstone Press, publisher of the Sunderland Echo and Hartlepool Mail, said: "We have made an announcement about the proposed closure of the press in Hartlepool.
"There are 25 people employed full-time in that press room and 35 part-time inserters, but obviously, it would be premature to talk in terms of redundancies at this point.
"It is just a proposal and there is a consultation period to go through, and we would also be keen to redeploy staff as far as we are able.
"The main reason it makes sense for our business is that in Sunderland we have a large press able to print 100 per cent colour and the market demands increasing colour on each page."
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