As U.S. media company Tribune Co.'s bankruptcy winds its way through court, three unions and the U.S. Bankruptcy Court trustee are objecting to the company's bonus plan, which would see tens of millions of dollars go to more than 700 managers, the Chicago Tribune reported.

The filings were made on Tuesday and Thursday, and were a response to the Tribune Co.'s request in late July to pay between $21 million and $69.9 million to the more than 700 "key" managers. Meanwhile, the company also made a request to the court for authorisation to pay nine of the top 10 executives $3.1 million in bonuses, originally meant for last year.

Asking for millions to pay bonuses to executives "while simultaneously pleading financial difficulties to the lower level workers who report and write the stories, sell the ads, produce the papers and handle the broadcasts," is not justifiable, the Washington-Baltimore Newspaper Guild, which represents 225 Tribune employees, stated in a filing, according to the Daily Herald.

"At a time when media companies are suffering incomparable losses and struggling to survive, the Debtors have proposed spending $69.9 million to reward their top management for financial performance that, year-over-year, evidences declining fortunes," the union filing stated, according to a report by the Chicago Reader. "While creditors face limited recovery on their claims and most rank-and-file employees live with frozen pay and benefits, the Debtors believe a proper exercise of business judgment results in millions of dollars distributed to management."