Staff at the Chronicle Herald, Halifax's only daily newspaper, staged an information picket Monday as 20 newsroom employees face layoffs.

Peter Duffy, president of the Halifax Typographical Union, Local 30130 of the Communications Workers of America, told CBC News that no non-unionized employees or management will share in the job cuts. Duffy said the fact only unionized employees will take the burden of the layoffs is a violation of labour code.

'It's like musical chairs, with knives.'—Peter Duffy, union local head

"We are not seeing any sign that others are being asked to sacrifice, it is just the union, in our opinion, that is being called up to the block," Duffy said. "And we are talking to our lawyer tomorrow [Tuesday] to find out our options, in terms of the labour front."

Employees set up outside the Chronicle Herald Building on Joseph Howe Drive in Halifax on Monday were handing out pamphlets from the union.

Monday is also the deadline for senior staff to accept or reject the buyout package of three weeks per year of service.

Duffy said he expects about seven employees, including him, will take the package.

"We have a second deadline this week that is looming very large, and causing grave anxiety, and that is the bumping," Duffy said. "We'll be into a process where people who are on that list, the layoff list, can bump other people if they have the 'competency,' that's a word we have to deal with in terms of interpretation, our interpretation and the company's, and also seniority. It's like musical chairs, with knives."

Citing increasing operating costs and declining advertising revenues, the newspaper gave layoff notices to almost a quarter of its newsroom staff Feb. 4.

The Halifax Herald Limited, owned by the Dennis family of Halifax, publishes the paper, which is one of the last independently owned newspapers in Canada.

According to the company, daily circulation of the Chronicle Herald exceeds 114,000, and weekly circulation of the Sunday Herald exceeds 80,000.

About 103 people work for the news division of the paper across Nova Scotia.