In bankruptcy, unsecured creditors usually get the short end of the stick, since they have no claim to a debtor's assets. But you can't blame them for trying: On Wednesday, a New York court named a seven-entity committee that will attempt to wheedle some cash out of the Star Tribune's Chapter 11.

Two of the Strib's big labor unions made the list — the newsroom's Newspaper Guild, and Teamsters Local 120, which represents the paper's mailers. (What do mailers do? They operate the machine that inserts ad supplements; they also bundle papers for delivery. In this case, their representative likely serves a three-local consortium that also represents drivers and press operators.)

Earlier this week, news emerged that bought-out workers would lose tens of thousands of dollars; their only recourse is to file an unsecured claim.

Even if you're not a labor sympathizer, you'll be interested in the next name: the Pension Benefit Guarantee Corp.

Perhaps not surprisingly, the PBGC guarantees pensions, paying limited benefits when plans run out of money. It would seem some pensioners will get stiffed, with the PBGC trying to limit exposure. I'll try to find out which plan is affected Thursday, though executives often have deferred comp that is unsecured.

Taxpayers aren't directly at risk here; the PBGC is funded by insurance premiums paid by defined-benefit plans and others. The PBGC is not in immediate trouble, but faces huge risks, especially if the auto industry implodes. That's led some to suggest it be part of the federal bailout.

The other committee members are:

♦ Wilmington Trust Co., a Delaware bank
♦ San Francisco-based Global Leveraged Capital Management, investors in "distressed" debt
♦ APAC Customer Services, customer contact outsourcing.
♦ Royle Printing of Sun Prairie, Wisc.