100 PINK SLIPS ABOUT TO HIT GRAY LADY STAFFERS

By KEITH J. KELLY

February 15, 2008 -- The New York Times Executive Editor Bill Keller yesterday told the paper's editorial staff that the company plans to slash about 100 newsroom jobs this year.

Keller broke the news to staffers in three separate meetings.

"The low-hanging fruit is gone, and so is some of the higher-hanging fruit," Keller said, according to a statement released by the Times.

"To meet our budget goals, we will have to do a little less, and every time we do less, we cede a bit of advantage."

Keller said he hoped to accomplish the cuts through buyouts and attrition, but acknowledged that involuntary cuts were possible.

Under past staff reductions, voluntary buyouts must first be offered before any firings can take place.

Many of the jobs affected fall under the jurisdiction of the Newspaper Guild.

Guild officials were not available to comment.

Insiders seemed resigned to the bad news.

"I don't think it comes as a surprise to anyone," grumbled one in sider, who added, "In some cases it's a way to get rid of deadwood."

The Times currently has 1,332 ed itorial em ployees - more news room jobs than any other newspa per in the US.

Keller promised that upper-level executives would share in the pain, but didn't disclose precisely how that would be accomplished.

The Times has been under pressure for years. Its circulation in the five boroughs of New York City, its home base, has plunged 20 percent over a five-year period.

The paper's ad base has also eroded.

And The Wall Street Journal is stepping up its coverage in the political and lifestyle arena following the $5.4 billion takeover of Dow Jones by News Corp., which also owns The Post.

keith.kelly@nypost.com