WFP Declares Temporary Curtailment at Ladysmith, B.C. Sawmill

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): Western Forest Products (WFP) has announced temporary production curtailment at its Ladysmith, British Columbia sawmill.

The curtailment is partly attributed to the strike action by workers represented by the United Steelworkers Local 1-1937, which had impacted log supply into the mill. According to company press release, the operations will be curtailed upon depletion of the log supply, which is expected to happen before August 1, 2019.

It must be noted that the union representing around 1,500 hourly employees and 1,500 employees working for company timberland operators and contractors in the province had begun stoppage of work effective July 1 this year, following the expiry of the 72-hour strike notice served on June 28^th, 2019. The previous collective agreement between WFP and the union had expired in mid-June. Meantime, the temporary curtailment is likely to impact 67 unionized employees at the saw mill.

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Don Demens, President & CEO of WFP stated that the lack of log supply on account of disruption due to strike action coupled with challenging market conditions have forced the company to temporarily curtail operations at the mill. The company will closely monitor log availability and market conditions, so as to decide upon the exact time when it can resume mill operations, he added.

Earlier in June this year, WFP had announced temporary curtailment at three of its saw mills- Duke Point, Saltair and Chemainus.