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A glimmer of light in lockout

Premier offers Tembec workers settlement hope on a grim day

By: Teghan Beaudette and Aldo Santin

9/12/2009 1:00 AM | Comments: 17

Locked-out Tembec workers watch TV news at their headquarters across the street from the Pine Falls paper mill.

BORIS.MINKEVICH@FREEPRESS.MB.CA Enlarge Image

Locked-out Tembec workers watch TV news at their headquarters across the street from the Pine Falls paper mill.

PINE FALLS -- After 99 days with­out a paycheque, and only 17 days before Christmas, locked-out Tem­bec workers got a glimmer of hope on Tuesday.

Premier Greg Selinger visited this Manitoba mill town, where manage­ment and workers have been stuck at loggerheads, and said a development today may show movement between the locked-out workers and the mill.

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"There's a separate process (today) where they were going to be making an offer to the workers on how to end the lockout. Right now, there is a proposal on the table from the company which hasn't been clarified yet to end the lockout," Selinger told news media.

His comments capped a day of emo­tional upheaval that began when Tem­bec announced it's selling the Pine Falls plant and will consider closing the mill if it can't find a buyer.

It would seem too much to hope for a Christmas miracle in which today's an­nouncement ends the lockout and lets the mill and town return to business as usual.

Tembec spokesman John Valley said Tuesday that even though the Quebec­based firm still wants to settle the labour dispute, the mill will not reopen even with a settlement. Valley said if a deal is reached, the employees would be laid off.

"We've been quite clear: It's in the best interests of Tembec and the em­ployees that we exit the site," said Val­ley, Tembec's executive vice-president of business development and corporate affairs. "It's our hope that we can find a new owner for the site."

Tembec locked out its 270 unionized workers Sept. 1 after the union rejected a proposal to cut wages and benefits by 35 per cent.

Tembec bought the mill in 1998 from a group of plant managers and em­ployees, but demand for newsprint has collapsed in the past year, resulting in falling prices and steep losses for the companies that operate the mills.

North American demand for news­print has dropped almost 50 per cent since 2003. Tembec posted a loss of $38 million in the second quarter this year. News of the plant sale wasn't a sur­prise for the union official handling ne­gotiations with Tembec. Wayne Skryp­nyk said he believed Tembec never wanted to continue operating the mill and precipitated the lockout as a justifi­cation to shut it down. "They come to the union and say, 'We need 40 per cent in concessions. We're not prepared to talk about it; we just want it. Give it to us, or else,' and they lock us out," said Skrypnyk, a rep­resentative of United Steelworkers of America.

"I don't believe Tembec has any in­terest in running the mill. I think that was their intention all along, to bring this mill down."

Skrypnyk said it would be easier for Tembec to sell the mill if prospective buyers don't have to cross a picket line to inspect the facility and the workers could collect employment insurance until a new owner reopened the mill.

Valley said Tembec will continue to market the mill. He said the company needs to be in negotiations with one or more buyers in early January and reach a deal by the end of March.

Without a deal, he said Tembec will consider other options, including permanently closing the mill.

The premier and Labour Minister Jennifer Howard travelled late Tues­day to Pine Falls to meet with commun­ity leaders, including the deputy may­or of Powerview-Pine Falls and union officials.

The government will provide $1 mil­lion to the Pine Falls community to deal with the looming economic changes, money that could be used to study if it is feasible for workers and/or the com­munity to buy the plant. Or it could be used to look into "additional economic development opportunities in that area."

Selinger also announced the province will put together a committee to help the community adjust to the anticipat­ed sale of the mill.

"The government is prepared to put a senior official on that committee to work with people on community ad­justment strategies, including feasibil­ity studies in terms of purchasing the plant and other economic development activities and programs we can put in place out here to move things forward," Selinger said.

Tembec's announced sale dominated question period in the legislature Tues­day, with the Opposition accusing the government of ignoring the plight of the 270 union workers until now.

Both Conservative Leader Hugh Mc­Fadyen and Liberal Leader Jon Ger­rard have visited the community in re­cent months, but the premier made his first visit Tuesday afternoon.

"We're disappointed that it's taken 99 days from the time of the lockout for the premier to show enough interest to visit the community," McFadyen said.

Selinger said the province had al­ready offered considerable support for Tembec, including tax credits for plant modernization, a $2.7-million sub­sidy for not cutting in provincial parks and lowering stumpage fees as market prices fell.

"Since the lockout began, we've pro­vided a conciliator and a mediator... and provided the resources for the two sides to come to an agreement," but un­fortunately they could not, the premier said.

-- With files from Larry Kusch

aldo.santin@freepress.mb.ca

 

THE REACTION: BITTERNESS, DELIGHT, PESSIMISM ABOUT THE FUTURE

Dave Torres, an employee of the mill for more than 30 years, who was three months away from retirement when the lockout began.

"They have a slogan: 'A community of people building the future together.' Well, it's not like that at all. It's a big corporation looking to make millions of dollars and taking all the profits and hightailing it out of here."

Eric Reder, campaign director for the Wilderness Committee environmental group.

"One of the largest sources of pollution in Manitoba over the last 80 years will be shut down, preventing 4.68 million tonnes of pollutants from being emitted each year. Pollution Watch ranks the coal-powered operation as the third-worst polluter in Manitoba. This is wonderful news for our province."

Joanne Raymond, co-owner with her husband of The Paper Town Motor Inn, home to the Pine Falls bar Nightcrawlers.

"The community is not as abuzz as it used to be. You've got people that are surviving on minimal wages walking the line, which is degrading... They've never asked anybody for anything. We all pay our taxes and work hard and now these people are working for peanuts, trying to support families. It's a lot of pride to swallow."

Spuddy Dean began work in the mill 35 years ago.

"I picked up a part-time job in Ducette for a little bit of extra money. My girlfriend works. We're surviving now, but I don't know if we can survive for another three months. Applications are out, but because of the lockout, we're not entitled to anything -- no training, no schooling. Nobody wants to hire you because if work starts, you're going to quit on them."

 

 

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition December 9, 2009 A3

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17 Commentscomment icon

I don't understand Gord R comment, you needed to unionize and didn't. What you say doesn't make sense,it was up to the employees to step up to the plate. You need someone in the plant floor to sign people up. Than if their is enough interest(#). You get certified,than it's election for the committee that will represent the workers. Enough of this,my friend,do your homework. This mill has been in operation since the 1920. NEVER,a labour dispute,one LOCKOUT(Sept 1,2009). This speaks for the quality of it's workforce. Tembec Inc has a history of milking plants for what they can and run. Conservative Leader Hugh McFadyen backs this up. Tembec,has not been a stellar corporate citizen,particularly in recent times.He refers to the 2.7 million that was given to Tembec to stop cutting trees in the provincial parks. Soon after the Co received the money,it started laying off workers and later locked them out. Where is that 2.7 MILLION,out east. This is the norm for this Co take the money and run. They don't reinvest in their plants. The closing of the recycle plant(deink) shrank their customer base. Good call Tembec,the states all have a certain percentage of recycle content that is require in their papers(newsprint). This is half if not more of the Pine Falls mill customers. Past behaviour is a good indicator of future behaviour. Wherever this employer has been same story different town. All the best to the Pine Falls and surrounding area. Let's hope someone does buy the mill.

By the way, how did Tembec treat it's Quebec workers? Were they also asked and did they accept at 35% pay cut?

If the 270 locked out workers had jointly won the 50 million in the Lottomax I wonder if they would have spent it to purchase and re-open the mill?

Contrary to some opinions here, unions are unfortunately still needed. In the late 80s, I worked for the Winnipeg branch of a large corporation operating nationwide. The face of labour was literally ground in the dirt. Contrary to the law, there were veiled threats that there would be 'consequences' for anyone attempting to form, support or speak in favour of unionization. Some of us complained to Employment Standards. They were shocked at conditions but no one wanted to risk 'consequences' (we were told were illegal) by filing formal complaints. These folks called the company to express concern about certain issues. That started even more vigorous threats of 'consequences'. A co-worker and I headed for Union Centre, were connected with a typical fat-cat and promised a prompt, supported action to organize. A year later he'd still done jack squat. The problem with unions - especially union fat-cats but also rank and file - is that they're never satisfied with striking a balance and demands rapidly become unreasonable, businesses are brought to their knees then unions whine when things like Tembec happen. I have no sympathy whatsoever for the greedy workers in Pine Falls but abundant sympathy for the families dependent on those pig-headed workers who expect it all and expect it now. Give your heads a shake. Poking holes in a sinking ship is just plain stupid. Newsprint plants are dinosaurs. As others observed, Selinger is just playing politics with taxpayers' money.

avatar

For those of you who don't understand this issue, it's not what the union did or didn't do its about severence and pension.How would you feel if your employer came to you and said "by the way, our company needs to downsize and needs more profitablity so you'll have to take a 35% cut in wages and benifits" and oh ya "you're going to have to sign this contract by the end of the day" or else you'll have to pack up all your belongings and leave. Not a good senario is it? Then to make matters worse he says to you "and by the way you'll not be getting EI to live on while you find another job". No EI means no money = no money to go back to school for retraining.
So take that to your Christmas stocking and stuff it.


If only these mill workers (millwrights, pipe-fitters, production crew) would work for minimum wage they could keep their jobs and the mill open. Maybe the local town doctor could work for $10 an hour to help out, and the stores could price items at 1950 levels, and the price of gas in pine falls could be locked in at .10 cents a litre. The province could give them the trees for free too, and cut the taxes to 0%. But the union just won't face reality!!! It's too bad poor little old Tembec ($2 billion revenue annually)is being picked on by the big union.

for the obtuse: above is intended as sarcasm

Sign of the times. Manitoba lost 6000 jobs in the passed couple months and the numbers apparantly are growing.
Not in a recession eh? Yeah right!

DJ... as a proud non Unionized business owner, I'd love to know, how you know, how much it costs a business owner to have a Union in place?

joe
This article has brought out a lot of Union bashers. The company never agreed to binding arbitration. If not for the Union, salaries all these years would be at or near minimum wage with no benefits.This lockout is all about breaking the union and getting massive injections of govt. money like all kinds of other corporate welfare bums have gotten.

As someone who grew up in a mill town, I know what these people are going through. My advice: Start a job search if you haven't already. These mills aren't exactly hot commodities and when they do find a buyer the situation doesn't tend to improve. Talk to the people in NWO like in Dryden and Fort Frances. The papermaking/printing industry is dead, and pulp can be brought cheaper from China.

It's sad to go to a place like Dryden and see it dying. The mill is 90% shut down and there really aren't any other options aside from picking up the family and leaving. The population is aging at a rediculous rate because there are so many retirees and people who took a package from the mill and retired. Their kids and grand kids leave when high school is done because there are no job options. It's basically a ghost town and a shell of it's former self.

Sorry to sound like Debbie Downer. Good luck to the Tembec workers and the people from Pine Falls.

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