MONTREAL - CANADA'S newspaper of record, The Globe and Mail, said on Friday it was planning to cut its work force by 10 percent - at least 80 to 90 jobs - through voluntary buyouts and possible layoffs.

Publisher Philip Crawley told Globe employees on Friday that 'the newspaper is looking to cut between 80 and 90 jobs, and will offer voluntary buyout packages over the next few weeks,' according to a statement on the newspaper's website.

'Should that target not be reached, layoffs will be needed to reach that figure,' he added.

The publisher told staff the company had faced 'a pretty steep drop' in newsprint advertising revenues.

'But the pace and the severity of the decline is like nothing we've seen in recent years,' he said.

The Globe and Mail roughly employs 800 people and is owned by CTVglobemedia, a private company that also owns Canadian TV network CTV.

The cash-strapped newspaper industry in the US and Canada has faced a string of cost cuts and layoffs in the face of declining sales and a move toward online media. -- AFP