Navistar to lay off final 345 employees in Chatham

The Canadian Press

CHATHAM, Ont. — Layoff notices have been issued to the remaining 345 employees at the Navistar truck plant in Chatham, Ontario.

The layoffs are due to take effect June 27th -- three days before the workers' current contract expires.

The company is required by law to issue the notices.

Bargaining on a new contract is expected to start early next month.

Already this year, Navistar has had two rounds of layoffs covering almost 700 workers at the plant.

The heavy truck industry is being hit hard by the U-S recession and the slumping Canadian economy.

Last year, rival Stirling Truck announced the closing of its plant in St. Thomas, Ontario, resulting in the loss of about 2,000 jobs.

CTVglobemedia to Layoff 105 Toronto Jobs

CTVglobemedia has just announced it will layoff 105 people in its Toronto TV division. The majority of the layoffs are from the former CHUM Ltd division that CTVglobemedia purchased for $1.7 billion.  CTVglobemedia spokesperson Bonnie Brownlee also added that the company will not make any more layoffs in 2008 and no comments were made concerning 2009. The layoffs are a direct result of the global financial crisis as the company tries to cut costs.

Navistar to lay off as many as 500 at Chatham plant

A “soft truck market’’ is being blamed for an impending layoff at a major truck assembly plant in Chatham.

Officials of International Truck and Engine Corp. confirmed today the layoff, scheduled to begin in January, could idle as many as 500 workers.

Layoff notices are being posted in the Richmond Street plant today.

“It’s too soon to know the exact number of workers that will be laid off,’’ said company spokesman Roy Wiley of Chicago. “It will all depend on market conditions over the next several weeks.’’

Wiley said the layoffs shouldn’t come as a surprise, considering the current tough economic conditions in North America.

“People simply aren’t buying trucks,’’ he said. “The order board is very soft.’’

Wiley said the fact the company’s lineup of highway trucks are the most fuel efficient in the industry isn’t helping sales.

“We’re not saying that 500 workers will be laid off,’’ stressed Wiley. “But under Ontario law we have to give notice that up to a certain number may be affected.’’

The current output at the Richmond Street plant is 100 trucks a day.

Wiley said there have been times in past years when layoff notices were posted and only a portion of the number listed were affected.

“Hopefully there is an economic upturn between now and January that could change the picture,’’ Wiley said.

He declined comment when asked how many people are currently employed at the Chatham plant.

Joe McCabe, CAW national representative, said both the union and the plant workers are aware that the order board numbers are down.

“But we are hoping to see a market improvement by the end of the next 12 weeks that will greatly reduce the layoff numbers,’’ he said. “We have to wait and see.’’

McCabe said he understood the 500 figure had been lowered to 470.

Ontario pulp mill to lay off workers

THE CANADIAN PRESS

TERRACE BAY–Terrace Bay Pulp, resurrected by Buchanan Forest Products two years ago, is the latest plant to announce layoffs in a depressed market.

About 425 workers at the plant on the north shore of Lake Superior are expected to be laid off for a month beginning November 9th.

Terrace Bay Mayor Mike King says it's "bad timing, just before Christmas," but a response to global economic conditions.

The decision comes a week after Thunder Bay's AbitibiBowater pulp and newsprint operation announced a similar two-week shutdown.

The AbitibiBowater layoff, which affects up to 600 people, also takes effect November 9th.

The layoffs come as about 200 workers at Marathon Pulp Inc. are expected to be asked this week to accept wage and benefit concessions.

Daimler closing Ontario truck plant

Daimler Trucks North America LLC said Tuesday its St. Thomas, Ont. plant will cease production early next year as it discontinues its Sterling brand "in response to continuing depressed demand."

The closing will result in the permanent layoff of 1,350 unionized workers by next March.

The St.Thomas location, approximately 200 kilometres southwest of Toronto, will cease "truck manufacturing operations in March 2009, concurrent with the expiration of the existing agreement with the Canadian Auto Workers members employed there," Stuttgart, Germany-based Daimler said in a news release.

The plant manufactures Sterling medium and heavy-duty trucks for commercial use.

Big Ontario auto parts firm lays off hundreds

Linamar three-month chart

Linamar Corp. of Guelph, Ont., confirmed Tuesday that it is trimming 400 to 500 more people from its 12,000-strong workforce in tough times for the North American auto and construction-equipment industries.

Linamar makes parts for General Motors, Chrysler, Ford and Caterpillar, among other customers, as well as farm equipment and other products, including Skyjack aerial work platforms. It has plants in Canada, the United States, Mexico, Germany, Hungary, Korea and China.

"We have 22 of our 38 facilities in Guelph, so the vast majority of the impact would be felt in Guelph, but it's not limited just to Ontario," the company's communication manager, Crystal Roberts, told CBC News.

About 7,000 people work at the Guelph plants, all of them non-union.

Roberts said the 400 to 500 employees getting layoff notices will join 200 to 300 previously laid off. No exact total was available because each of the 38 plants is run as a separate enterprise, she said.

"Each of the general managers is assessing the work force every day and then assessing any layoff numbers. …They are temporary, and our goal is to get people back as quickly as possible, so that number's going to always be in flux."

The news did not depress Linamar's share price. The stock closed at $11.67, up 51 cents, on the Toronto Stock Exchange. But it was still less than half its 52-week high of $24.68.

The company has been "managing quite well" in a difficult environment with a strong Canadian dollar but is affected by the problems of its customers, Roberts said.

"We're at a point now, with the volume reductions being what they are, that we've had no choice but to start looking at our workforce and conducting temporary layoffs," she said.

Linamar has been trying to hold its own in the auto parts business, she said, but orders for the Skyjack platforms have fallen off as a result of the U.S. construction slump.

Slumping U.S. economy blamed for layoffs at Sterling’s St. Thomas truck plant

ST. THOMAS, Ont.

Sterling Trucks is eliminating one of its two remaining shifts and laying off another 720 workers as of November 2008, as the southwestern Ontario manufacturer joins the growing ranks of companies being squeezed by an economic slowdown in the U.S.

A year ago, Sterling laid off an additional 600 people in St. Thomas when another shift was cut, said Dave Elliott, president of the Canadian Auto Workers Local 1001.

Back when there were three shifts, “We built trucks pretty much 24 hours a day, five days a week,” Elliott said.

But with the economy in a slump, “freight’s not moving, construction is down — nobody is buying trucks.”

Sterling Truck is headquartered in Redford, Michigan, and is a subsidiary of Daimler Trucks North America of Portland, Oregon.

The facility produces a range of vehicles under the Sterling brand, from small delivery trucks and highway rigs to cement mixers and garbage trucks.

Canadian Press

24,000 Ontario jobs lost in June

Firms facing slowdown in sales take cautious approach to new hiring
Jul 12, 2008 04:30 AM
Comments on this story (6) Rita Trichur Business Reporter
Prospects for Canada's once-mighty labour market are looking increasingly dim after it lost 5,000 net jobs in June as full-time positions vanished and the unemployment rate rose to 6.2 per cent, economists said yesterday.
Ontario has the dubious distinction of being the month's "big loser" after shedding 24,000 jobs. That stood in contrast to May, when it led the country in job creation.
With the national labour market now in negative territory, analysts predict the Bank of Canada will leave its key interest rate unchanged at 3 per cent next week.
Economists had forecast the creation of 10,000 positions, leaving the jobless rate at 6.1 per cent. Statistics Canada instead reported a sharp drop in full-time positions as some 39,200 jobs were slashed from payrolls. The creation of 34,200 part-time jobs helped offset those losses.
Full-time job losses have occurred in three of the last four months. In June, employers were increasingly skittish about offering those coveted positions in both the private and public sectors.
"The move away from full-time work in favour of part-time is consistent with a slowing labour market and signals more labour market weakness is likely still ahead of us," said James Marple, an economist with Toronto Dominion Bank.
As well, those jobs being created are "lower quality," said Adrienne Warren, senior economist with the Bank of Nova Scotia. That is because part-time jobs typically have lower wages and fewer benefits.
"Businesses are taking a much more cautious approach to new hiring right now, given they are facing the prospect of slowing sales growth," Warren said.
That trend is expected to continue, particularly in Central Canada.
The net loss of 24,000 jobs raised Ontario's unemployment rate by 0.3 percentage points to 6.7 per cent in June.
In a rare showing, manufacturing gains counterbalanced losses in construction, said Marple. "The services sector in Ontario on the other hand saw significant losses, shedding 31,800 jobs."
Still, employment in the province has grown 1.7 per cent during the past 12 months because of gains in construction and the service sector, Statistics Canada said.
Ontario Progressive Conservative John Tory seized on June's net decline, saying it proves the Liberal government's economic plan is failing the province.
"Statistics Canada says Ontario lost another 45,000 full-time jobs last month – the worst results in the country and Ontario's biggest monthly loss since 1990. That's like the entire city of Cornwall or Timmins disappearing," stated Tory.
Employment is considered a "lagging indicator," meaning earlier economic declines are only now materializing in the data, economists said.
Ontario's gross domestic product declined 0.3 per cent in the first quarter, leaving it teetering on the brink of a recession.
The Bank of Canada, however, must consider the big picture when deciding on interest rates. Soaring commodity and food prices are fuelling inflation, while the U.S. recession is hindering economic growth.
The central bank stunned the market last month when it kept the overnight rate at 3 per cent. Economists had expected a cut.
This time around, however, weak employment data will make it easier for the bank to hold rates steady, economists said.

Magna to lay off 400

Jun 18, 2008 11:35 AM
Tony Van Alphen
Business Reporter
Canadian Press

Magna International Inc. is laying off about 400 workers permanently at its Formet Industries plant in St. Thomas, Ont., because of a sharp downturn in demand for full-size pickup trucks.

The Aurora-based auto parts giant announced today that the reduction in production and salaried jobs will take effect on Sept. 8. The plant, south of London, Ont., makes truck frames for the General Motors assembly plant in Oshawa, Ont., which has also planned to cut production.

Magna, which makes various parts and components for the three big U.S.-based automakers, said employees at its Formet Industries plant will receive severance packages based on their years of service.

The reduction represents about 25 per cent of the current workforce at Formet, a division of Magna's Cosma Structural Systems. The plant currently employs 1,600 people.

It is the first permanent layoff at Formet since it opened in 1997.

The layoffs announced Wednesday adds to the spate of industrial woes that have hit the southwestern Ontario blue-collar city, which depends heavily on light manufacturing — much of it geared to the auto sector.

Ford’s St. Thomas-Talbotville car-assembly plant, just outside the city, continues to make the Crown Victoria rear-wheel-drive sedan.

Under a three-year labour contract ratified by the Canadian Auto Workers in May, Ford agreed to keep the plant in operation until at least September 2011, when the contract would expire, instead of the previously scheduled end in 2010.

However, a similar agreement between the union and General Motors has failed to prevent the automaker from closing its truck plant in Oshawa, Ont., next year as a result of the soaring price of gasoline, which has changed consumer buying habits.

Demand for GM Sierra and Chevy Silverado began falling last year, causing General Motors to cut its No. 3 shift at the Oshawa truck plant in late 2007 and reducing its workforce to about 2,600 people.

GM later announced in April it will end the No. 2 shift in September and most recently, after signing its three-year contract with the CAW, said this month it will end truck production in Oshawa and three others in 2009.

Toyota said Tuesday that it is laying off 200 temporary workers and slowing production at its San Antonio truck plant in Texas, where the Japan-based company employs 2,000 full-time workers.

Toyota will also schedule 14 days between now and October when no trucks will roll off the assembly line.

Ford to lay off up to 430 Windsor employees

By John McCrank

TORONTO (Reuters) - Ford Motor Co (F.N: Quote) said on Thursday it could slash more than 400 jobs at the Windsor, Ontario, plant where it makes engines for pickup trucks and SUVs, as part of the company's shift to focus on more fuel efficient vehicles.

"We have sent layoff notices to approximately 430 employees," said Mark Truby, a Ford spokesman in Detroit.

"That doesn't mean they will all necessarily be laid off... the exact number that we end up with will be clearer as we work through some of the final production volumes."

Truby said there are currently no other plans to lay off workers at Ford's other Canadian plants.

Buzz Hargrove, president of the Canadian Auto Workers union said he expects around 300 union members to be laid off at the Windsor plant.

"We'll lose a shift in our V8 engine plant in Windsor and, other than that, I don't see it having an impact anywhere else," he said.

The Windsor plant assembles V8 and V10 engines. Ford said on Thursday it would cut back on the production of sport utility vehicles and pickup trucks as consumers shift to more fuel efficient vehicles amid soaring pump prices.

Hargrove said the union would look into buyout packages, but with all the recent layoffs at Ford, which has struggled amid weak U.S. sales and high fuel prices, laid-off workers would likely be left with little protection.

"We've pretty well exhausted the buyout pool, or the retirement incentive pool ... so we're now down to the point, with the exception of Oakville, that anything that hits us means people are laid directly onto the street," he said.

Ford's Truby also said he was unsure if buyouts would be offered.

Hargrove confirmed that a new, still-unnamed vehicle is slated to be produced in Ford's Oakville, Ontario, plant, probably some time next year.

Plans for the vehicle were said to be included in the three-year contract agreement between the union and the automaker that was ratified on May 4, but it was never officially announced.

The CAW said it would not look to revisit the contract terms.

(Editing by Rob Wilson)

Torstar cutting newspaper jobs

GM in Oshawa laying off 1,000

Strike at American parts plant takes further toll

Apr 17, 2008 04:30 AM

Tony Van Alphen
Business Reporter

The impact of the continuing strike at American Axle and Manufacturing Holdings Inc. in the United States will soon hit another General Motors plant in Oshawa.

General Motors of Canada Ltd. confirmed yesterday that temporary layoff notices have been sent to about 1,000 workers on the third shift at the Oshawa car complex, effective Monday.

Stew Low, GM's director of communications, said the company is reducing car output because of a shortage of parts from American Axle, where a strike by 3,600 workers has closed five U.S. operations since late February.

Low said it is unclear whether GM could cancel the layoff at the car plant if American Axle and the United Auto Workers reach a settlement during the next few days.

Yesterday the UAW said it postponed a labour rally set for Friday because progress was being made in the contract talks in Detroit. The UAW has rejected company demands for major wage cuts.

The shift cut at the Oshawa car plant will reduce output of Chevrolet Impalas, Buick Allures and LaCrosses by about 500 a day. The plant currently assembles about 1,550 vehicles daily.

The American Axle strike and subsequent shortage of parts has triggered the shutdown of numerous GM assembly operations across North America, including the Oshawa truck plant.

However, output at the truck plant will resume Monday for three weeks because GM is directing parts from an American Axle factory in Mexico to three GM truck operations instead of plants that assemble sport utility vehicles.

The Oshawa truck plant, which employs more than 2,000 workers on two shifts, has been idle for seven weeks.

While on layoff, GM employees, who are members of the Canadian Auto Workers, receive about 65 per cent of gross pay through a combination of federal employment insurance and company supplementary unemployment benefits.

Layoff toll rises to 960 workers

By NORMAN DE BONO, SUN MEDIA
Therm-O-Disc in St. Thomas has announced it is closing in one year, with the loss of 280 jobs. (Derek Ruttan, Sun Media)

The layoff toll in the London area just keeps climbing.

London automotive parts plant Qualtech will chop 50 jobs, just as St. Thomas parts-maker Presstran will lay off 280 workers Monday, Magna International, which owns both plants, announced yesterday.

The news comes one day after Therm-O-Disc in St. Thomas announced it is closing in one year, cutting 280 jobs, and Dana Corp. in St. Marys issued layoff notices to about 350 workers as it prepares to mothball that plant.

The toll is a stunning 960 jobs lost in the city and region's manufacturing sector in only two days.
"We are taking a hit, definitely we are taking a hit," Dave Kerr, president of the St. Thomas and District labour council, said yesterday. "We are losing jobs here and we have to start fighting to keep them."

Qualtech, which makes seats for Cami Automotive in Ingersoll, has cut the jobs effective April 21 because Cami has gone to two shifts, said Tracy Fuerst, director of corporate communications at Magna International.

In addition, Presstran has had to cut jobs as a result of the American Axle strike in the U.S. which has shut down GM plants, so other suppliers to the automaker, such as Magna, are also impacted.

Last month, Formet, also in St. Thomas, laid off 1,200 as a result of the American Axle strike.
"This is a real setback," said Bob Hammersley, president and chief executive of the St. Thomas Chamber of Commerce. "Our first concern is the people. It is not just about paycheques, but about their lives. This is felt throughout the community. These people buy groceries, make car and mortgage payments, it hurts everyone."

But Presstran and Formet will recall workers once the American Axle strike is settled. Still, the strike is the last thing the industry needs -- it has been hurt by slumping sales of U.S. vehicles and the strong Canadian dollar, said Scott Turner, executive vice-president of Presstran and Formet.

"The strike is dragging on now and it is damaging everyone, including this company. It is now problematic," said Turner.

"We have to find a way to buckle down and make a better product. I still think Ontario can be competitive, but we have to get focused on our costs."

Therm-O-Disc, in business since 1961, announced it is closing its plant in March 2009 to keep the company "globally competitive."

It has excess capacity in St. Thomas, said Dave Baldridge, a spokesperson.

"It's a result of tough economic pressures and not a reflection of the employees who have performed well for many years," said Baldridge, adding the site will be sold.

St. Thomas has been hit with A. Schulman Inc. closing this year, cutting 120 jobs, and more than 120 have been laid off at Lear Seating. Sterling Truck has also laid off about 650.

350 Dana workers given lay-off notices

The struggles of the North American auto industry have hit home in St. Marys.

Three-hundred-and-fifty workers at the Dana plant in the town have been given layoff notices.

The workers at the automotive parts plant were given 12 weeks' notice of the layoffs, which take effect at the end of June when a contract with Ford ends.

The company says it is working to try to find new contracts.

Durham Furniture slashing jobs; 150 being laid off, Chesley plant closing

Posted By JONATHON JACKSON
Posted 2 days ago

Durham Furniture will end production in Chesley by mid-March and 150 jobs will be lost after the company sought protection from its creditors and launched a court-supervised restructuring of its finances and operations.

All further production will be consolidated in the Durham factory, according to a news release from the insolvent company, which received creditor protection Tuesday under the Companies' Creditors Arrangement Act.

"This is really bad news," said Arran-Elderslie Mayor Ron Oswald, whose municipality includes Chesley. "They were the biggest employer we have in Arran-Elderslie and in Chesley. It's going to be a great loss to the municipality and the community."

Kevin Eccles, mayor of West Grey, which includes Durham, said the news will be "a devastating blow" to the local economy.

Under CCAA rules, a company must have more than $5 million in liabilities before it can receive protection under the act. The news release from Durham Furniture said the strong Canadian dollar and an "underutilization of our manufacturing capacity" are to blame for the conditions which led the company to seek that protection.

"This difficult decision is the best course of action given the current economic conditions and challenges," Michael Pitman, the company's chief executive officer, said in the release.

Also cited was a "weak" economy in the United States, where Durham Furniture has a showroom and ships the majority of its products. The showroom, in High Point, N.C., will also be closed.

"While these decisions affect many valued employees, we believe the necessary structural changes will benefit the company for the long term," chief operating officer Wayne Brohman said in the release.

Brohman would not comment when contacted by The Sun Times.

The company's executive secretary, Wendy Zettler, who issued the release, clarified the pending closure of the Chesley plant but said she could not comment further.

Durham Furniture employed 650 people in November 2006 when it was producing an estimated 170,000 to 180,000 pieces of solid wood bedroom furniture annually.

Two separate layoffs in 2007 resulted in the loss of 140 jobs and the shift of some work, like cabinet finishing and final trim and packaging, from Chesley to Durham.

People who kept their jobs took pay cuts of five per cent and the company said then it would be able to "focus on its long-term strategies and preserve employment for its valued workforce."

An anonymous caller to The Sun Times said a further five per cent pay cut was coming on Jan. 28.

Oswald, who was not aware of the company's latest decision until he was told by a Sun Times reporter, said he had not been optimistic about Durham Furniture's future in spite of that reassurance.

"I have had serious concerns of this for a few months," he said.

Eccles added his understanding was the company has found it difficult to compete with products made at much lower prices by overseas manufacturers, particularly those in China.

It's not clear yet whether the job losses will come only in Chesley or whether they will also affect employees in Durham.

Eccles wouldn't find it any consolation if it turns out only Chesley employees will lose their jobs.

"It's still devastating. I can't say that this protects or insulates anything in West Grey or Durham," said Eccles, who is also the warden of Grey County. "And there's a number of people from Southgate and Grey Highlands and Hanover that work at Durham Furniture."

Oswald is trying to remain optimistic, pointing out the Chesley facilities are still fairly new and might prove attractive to another company that wants to set up shop there.

"Maybe something good will come out of this. They mightn't be making furniture there again, but I'm sure there's other uses for the facilities," he said.

"We have a council meeting all day Monday, so this'll be on the agenda."


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Satisfied Brake to cut 180 jobs

Posted By Greg Peerenboom
Posted 10 days ago
The shadow cast by the high loonie has darkened Christmas prospects for employees at the city's fourth largest industrial employer, Satisfied Brake Products.

The automotive brake maker told staff Wednesday that about 180 of them will be laid off by next February.

Entire family incomes will be wiped out, said Sean Floyd, the local representative for Retail Wholesale Department Store Union, manufacturing division, local 713.

"The biggest hit is that we have many two-salaried families in this place, in some cases, three salaries," Floyd said, explaining that not only does a set of parents work at Satisfied Brake, but also one of their children.

"Satisfied regrets that it is forced to make this decision. We know these layoffs will adversely affect both employees and the community," stated a press release hand delivered to the Standard-Freeholder.

The company added its "intent" is to keep the plant open.

The company representative did not stay to be interviewed. A copy was not provided first to the union, Floyd said. The layoff notice is the biggest since Domtar announced its Cornwall plant closure - a loss of 390 jobs - almost two years ago to the day.

It's the continuation of a grim trend in the manufacturing sector.

"We're in a phase now of seeing the obliteration of the middle classes," Floyd said, citing 300,000 job losses in Ontario and Quebec since the loonie started its climb to parity against the U.S. dollar a few years ago.

Satisfied Brake employees had been steeling themselves against the deep cuts.

"Yeah, they've been saying that again and again; there's been rumours going around the plant," said Lise LaFrance, who was among the first to leave the Education Street plant at the conclusion of the 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. shift.

She had become resigned to her fate.

"There's not much you can do about it," said the middle-aged woman who had seven years of service, adding she'll get by until she finds other work because her boyfriend has a job.

Most workers stoically trudged on past attempts to interview them over their particular situation.

Most of those who stopped momentarily indicated they were among "the lucky," including Lorraine Gregoire and her boyfriend Eric Bailey, who were among the first to be hired by Satisfied Brake when it opened in 1997.

"It's really sad, so sad," Gregoire said.

"All my buddies will all be gone," she said, of the friendships she's made while there.

That included Bailey, whom she knew for some time, but started dating about six months ago.

Another co-worker, who left before giving her name, said even her nine years of service wasn't enough to keep her on payroll.

The layoff slices Satisfied Brake's staff by almost two thirds and its operations from three shifts over 24 hours to one shift.

It will be reduced to the eighth largest industrial employer in the city from the fourth largest.

At its peak a few years ago, the plant had 600 workers.

In those better times, Satisfied Brake had received kudos from a big industry consulting firm, Frost & Sullivan, which gave them the 2005 Growth Strategy Leadership Award for increasing sales and expanding its customer base.

Due to the plant's relatively young life, Floyd doubts any of the affected workers would be able to bridge the gap between employment and retirement by stretching out their severance and Employment Insurance pay.

So unlike many of Domtar's employees who may have managed to maintain a semblance of their lifestyle and stay in the city, ex-Satisfied Brake workers will have to wait it out on government assistance until they find new work or move out of town.

The fallout won't just be shouldered by the out-of-work, as the ripple effect will hurt the local economy, Floyd said.

He said the average wage was between $13 and $14 an hour, although some workers earn more than $15. Add benefits and the total value increases to almost $19.

Floyd said the union couldn't do much more to prevent the big layoff. It had already accepted an 18-month wage freeze which began earlier this year and allowed a "two-tier" salary grid which paid new workers less.

The concessions, he said, saved the company about $500,000 annually. While the high Canadian dollar was the main culprit, the Satisfied Brake press release said: "higher oil prices, raw material costs and higher utility prices have eliminated Satisfied's Canadian manufacturing competitive advantages."

Satisfied said 80 per cent of its brake products are sold in the U.S., making the city plant vulnerable.

Most of its revenue is paid in a less valuable U.S. dollar while expenses are paid in Canadian currency.

"As a result, some products are no longer economically feasible to produce in Canada, and therefore, production and staffing levels must be scaled back," the press release stated.

Under such conditions, Floyd could understand Satisfied's decision, especially when senior levels of government don't stand in the way of corporations.

"The manufacturing sector is being sold out by the governments," he said.

"We have petitioned through our national union and (local) council for assistance from both provincial and federal governments and received zilch.

"The strength of the Canadian dollar is playing a major role in mass termination in the manufacturing sector," he said, blaming the federal Conservative government for not reining in the high-flying loonie.

He said the Liberal provincial government's auto sector programs are designed to boost research and development, "not to help the guy on the street pay rent or feed his kids."

Provincial Liberal MPP Jim Brownell was unaware of the union representative's criticism when he left a voice mail at the Standard-Freeholder.

"It's very sad that at this time of year as we head into holidays that we have another (layoff)," Brownell said. He added he will be contacting Satisfied Brake for more information and then lobby the ministries of post-secondary training and economic development and trade to assist the laid off workers.

Stormont, Dundas and South Glengarry's federal Conservative MP Guy Lauzon was attending a vote in the House of Commons and was unavailable for comment.



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Tembec shuts mills; Mill workers in Cochrane and Kapuskasing given layoff notices

Posted By Michael Peeling
Posted 3 days ago

A major forestry company has laid off 200 mill workers in two Northeastern Ontario towns as it struggles to operate under difficult market conditions.

Tembec Inc. announced it will, for an indefinite period, shut down one of three paper machines currently running at Kapuskasing's Spruce Falls mill on Oct. 23, putting 50 people out of work, while all 150 workers at the sawmill in Cochrane will be off the job starting Oct. 19.

Tracy Dottori, a Tembec spokeswoman, said all of the employees were told of the shutdowns in advance of Friday's public announcement.

While the company has no set plan to aid its laid-off employees in place yet, Dottori said Tembec is working on on a plan while it constantly reassesses the viability of reopening the Cochrane mill and restarting the Kapuskasing paper machine.

"We're looking at a lot of possibilities right now," Dottori said.

"We're working on a plan, but I can't give away many of the details until it's in place. We'll continue to assess how to best help our employees during this time."

Dottori cited significant declining newsprint consumption in North America, high fibre costs, particularly for wood chip residue, and the strong Canadian dollar versus the American dollar as factors that have led to the newsprint machine shutdown.

"A decrease in the number of U.S. market housing starts has had a big impact (in Cochrane), and so have lumber demand and pricing, both of which are poor," she said.

Cochrane Mayor Lawrence Martin said the town has met with re-elected MPP David Ramsay (Liberal - Timiskaming-Cochrane) about government programs that could help the workers get through the layoff, which is estimated to have an impact on the local economy to the tune of a $7-million annual loss.

"We were not officially expecting the layoff, but we could see the writing on the wall," Martin said. "It was only a matter of time."

Town council plans on meeting with union officials to determine other ways the mill workers could be helped, Martin said.

Martin is optimistic that at least a few people may keep their jobs supplying wood chips from the mill to the Abitibi-Consolidated pulp and paper mill in Iroquois Falls.

Kapuskasing Mayor Alan Spacek said the town is bracing for the spin-off impact of 50 job losses, which he believes will multiply three-fold at least.

"It's frustrating for us," Spacek said. "(The mill) went from being stable in August to where we are today. (Tembec) was even predicting a bit of growth."

The weakened U.S. dollar has destroyed the possibility of growth for now, according to Spacek.

"It's certainly going to have a negative impact on the morale of the community, but we need to remain optimistic that it's a temporary situation." said the mayor. "The dollar is going through an unusual adjustment."

Spacek said government needs to be pressed to provide financial assistance to the forest products industry, aid in making mills more efficient, and help create a market environment that encourages new and more diverse product lines.

As a back-up plan, the Town of Kapuskasing has been looking at getting into mineral investments with the help of the Timmins Economic Development Corporation and its resident geologist Robert Calhoun.

Deposits of silica, clay, slate and soapstone have been identified in the region as starting points for potential investment.

Lorraine Crickard's husband, a 30-year employee of the Cochrane sawmill, will lose his job, at least temporarily, but she is more concerned about workers who have only been at the Tembec mill for a few years.

"It's definitely going to affect the community and all the companies that service the mill, but it's young families that still have kids to support and no pension to rely on," Crickard said. "What are they going to do?"

Crickard's children have all grown up and left home, but the couple learned the importance of preparing for the worst when her husband was laid off the first time less than two years ago.

He took another job to make ends meet, but eventually returned to the sawmill.

Dottori said it is far too early to predict the future of the Cochrane and Kapuskasing mills.


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Layoff notices issued to nearly 500 workers at Ford engine plant

WINDSOR, Ont. (CP) - Nearly 500 workers at Ford's Essex Engine Plant have received pink slips.

CAW Local 200 first vice-president Tom Cochois says the plant was scheduled to close in mid-November but will now shut its doors Nov. 9. Cochois says Ford officials did not come forward with information that the closing date had been moved up.

He says the union had to approach the company after hearing speculation on the shop floor about an early closing.

Cochois says 375 production workers and 100 skilled-trades workers have received layoff notices.

The Essex plant will be the second Windsor Ford plant to shut its doors this year, following the closure of a casting plant in May.