Another Fox Cities Area Paper Mill Cutting 200 Jobs!

[pojo]

Since the economy in the Fox Cities is based on the Paper Industry, this is hitting home really hard.

Yet, Dubya is saying the Economy is on the rebound....well NOT around the Fox Cities. Numerous papermills are shutting down machinery; if not the whole mill. My mom, dad and step-dad all work in Papermills! This article really hits home!

*****My step-dad is on the verge of losing his job....He might unfortunately, be a portion of those who walk away from the job sight. He works on the No. 84 machine! Because of his seniority, lets hope he can transfer to a different area of the mill and keep his job. ********

Neenah facility to lose 200 jobs

Employees told Glatfelter to cut half of work force

By Ed Lowe
Post-Crescent staff writer

NEENAH — Glatfelter, an international papermaking company, will cut its Neenah work force by more than half, laying off 200 employees by the end of the year, workers learned Wednesday.

The announcement, shared with workers at the century-old plant at 3 p.m., devastated government officials and labor leaders in a region already reeling from manufacturing job losses, particularly those in the paper industry.

"The elimination of jobs is an exceedingly difficult decision to make," said George H. Glatfelter II, chairman and chief executive officer, in a written statement from corporate headquarters in York, Pa.

"Glatfelter people have been at the core of our business success for nearly 140 years. Although any reduction in force is difficult, we recognize the need to balance short-term decisions with long-term objectives that are in the best interest of our remaining employees as well as our shareholders." Michael Grones, the international representative for "a little over 300" union members at the plant, members of the Paper, Allied-Industrial, Chemical and Energy Workers International Union (PACE), said workers had no warning of the pending cuts.

"The union leadership was informed of this at 2 p.m.," Grones said after union members met to share notes at the Fox Valley Area Labor Council building in Neenah late Wednesday. "We didn't expect this at all. There was no signal this was coming."

A letter issued to plant employees at the staff meeting, a copy of which was obtained by The Post-Crescent, said "mill management will operate the mill with approximately 155 fewer union jobs and 45 fewer salary jobs. A total of 200 jobs will be lost."

The mill employs a total of 367 people. The letter said company managers will decide by early October "which positions and people will remain and those that we must ask to leave." Grones said plant officials say they intend to complete the downsizing by the end of the year.

The letter said the cuts were necessary, since, "Industry-wide, book-publishing paper-makers continue to face low prices, declining demand and high operation costs. ... Despite the outstanding efforts by mill employees, the mill continues to experience high input costs (energy and secondary fibers), and high fixed costs."

Company officials could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

Neenah Mayor George Scherck called the news "one more blow for the workers of the Fox Valley."

"Since I've been mayor, we've had a number of these (layoff announcements)," Scherck said. "We keep hearing that the turnaround is in sight, but every time we turn around it's more bad news."

The written announcement to employees said the mill will cease operation of its on-site pulp mill and its No. 84 paper machine. The mill will end commodity paper production and focus on producing higher-margin paper and engineered products on its two remaining machines.

The company said its Printing and Converting business unit will redeploy resources to focus on its highest value-added products and fortify its leadership position in premium book publishing papers. Grones said union representatives will attempt to meet with company officials to encourage retirement incentives, severance packages and other means to assist affected workers.

"We'll talk to them about saving as many jobs as we can," Grones said.

Glatfelter's most recent quarterly earnings report, issued July 23, showed the company’s earnings dropped sharply from the same quarter of a year before. Earnings for the latest quarter were two cents per diluted share, compared to 17 cents per share in the second quarter of 2002.

"Our (quarterly) operating results reflect a very difficult global market," George H. Glatfelter II, company chairman and CEO, said in a statement to stockholders.

"In this challenging environment we are clearly focused on maintaining our financial discipline … considering all appropriate actions necessary to further strengthen the company’s financial position."

The Neenah mill, established as the home of Bergstrom Paper Co. in 1904, is the smaller of two U.S. facilities operated by the York, Pa.-based maker of specialty papers and engineered products. Glatfelter operates overseas at facilities in Germany, France and the Philippines.

Wednesday's news comes a week after Gov. Jim Doyle announced a $1 billion bid to revive the state economy through the use of tax subsidies and private investment incentives.

State Rep. Dean Kaufert, R-Neenah, said he would contact Doyle today to urge a review of Wisconsin’s business climate

"Clearly, it’s distressing," Kaufert said as he looked upon the mill Wednesday night.

"This has been a fixture here in the community for a long time. It is the gateway into the downtown."

Kaufert said the state must review the regulatory and tax environments under which the state’s paper companies operate.

Ed Lowe can be reached at 920-993-1000, ext. 293, or by e-mail at elowe@postcrescent.com Post-Crescent staff writers Duke Behnke and Pete Bach contributed to this report.

[azskyman]

Tough time, Shannon, for the paper business in many ways.

We buy about 130,000 lbs of paper a week...up from 108,000 lbs last year, but mill prices are not strong...and producers are looking at down time, changing to alternative production, or, as in this case, perhaps shutting down the operations.

We are willing to pay fair market prices to help keep everyone at work..but it is a slow and sluggish market.

We are fortunate to have one of the busiest operations in Arizona right now...a testament to my staff who believe that what they do is important and take pride in what we produce.

Let's hope the market gets a jump start during the last quarter...

Azskyman

[blizzard]

Shannon, sorry to hear that your step-dad may lose his job over this. The place where I work also cut some jobs about a year and a half ago. 200+ employees walked out of here never to return. It is a very devastating ordeal, and yes, it is a shock to the local economy. Our area is also supported by wood industry jobs. paper mill, Match mill, and ceiling tile mill. I hope everything works out for you and your family, we are thinking of you and praying that everything will turn out.

[TexasStooge]

That's what we really needed to hear, more job cuts!