The layoffs at Rayonier Advanced Materials (RYAM) in Témiscaming, Que. began over the weekend, explained Unifor Local 233 president Stéphane Lefebvre, who expects the first round to include 50 job losses of the pending 275.
“The reality is setting in,” Lefebvre detailed. “It’s an eerie feeling to walk through the old mill and it be silenced.”
“RYAM clearly does not want to be here,” Lefebvre added, made clear by “shutting down half the mill and putting the other half up for sale — they have no interest in being in Témiscaming.”
“For the whole of this site to be successful,” Lefebvre continued, “the best option is to find an operator to run the whole site.”
The company halted operations on July 2. The plant is a 45-minute drive northeast of North Bay.
See: It’s official, RYAM lays off 275 workers at Témiscaming plant
There are “two solutions to our problem,” Lefebvre added. One is that “RYAM decides to partner up with the local group here and start the specialty cellulose back up and run the site as a whole.” A partnership of that sort would work, he noted. The second solution is for RYAM to sell outright.
“We’re not asking them to give the mill away,” Lefebvre said, “but to sell for its market value and get out of town.” Lefebvre was not able to provide an exact price for the mill but suggested it could be well over $100 million.
See: Unifor BBQ leads to roadblock as union protests RYAM firings
This past Thursday, the union held a solidarity barbecue across the road from the RYAM plant. Many attended, including regional mayors and politicians. The crowd shut down the highway with a human blockade, preventing traffic through the border on Highway 63. After the police arrived the people stepped back to allow a lane to open.
“The people wanted to show their frustration and their anger,” Lefebvre said, “and they did that in a very positive and polite way.”
Lefebvre noted that the union has been talking with Pierre Fitzgibbon, of the National Assembly of Quebec, the Minister of Economy, Innovation and Energy. Lefebvre detailed that if certain aspects of the plant could be upgraded — specifically “our number 10 boiler” — from fossil fuels to “green energy,” the ministry might be willing “to help refurbish it and make it more efficient.” The ministry could then “help to find an operator” for the site,” Lefebvre added.
Lefebvre mentioned there has been more talk between the union and the governments, but the union is still pushing for concrete actions and solutions. “I’ll never be satisfied until we find a solution.”
“They’re working with us,” he added, “they’re communicating with us. It took a lot of pushing and a lot of pressure, and now I just want to make sure that it’s not just political promises.”
David Briggs is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter who works out of BayToday, a publication of Village Media. The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada.
