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Port Hawkesbury workers prepare for strike vote

After working for over a year without a contract, unionized workers at the Stora Enso mill in Port Hawkesbury are p…
After working for over a year without a contract, unionized workers at the Stora Enso mill in Port Hawkesbury are preparing to hold a strike vote, the CBC has reported.

The approximate 500 mill and clerical workers voted to repudiate the company’s most recent contract proposal. According to the CBC, the offer neglects to address issues regarding the contracting out of workers and worker seniority, two key areas of concern, according to the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union.

Although the strike vote is scheduled to take place on December 1st and 2nd, the CBC reported that Tim Laatsch, vice president of communications at Stora Enso, has confirmed the company is still willing to discuss the issue with the union, but that there are circumstances surrounding the situation that need to be taken into account.

“I think folks need to begin to see the reality of what’s taking place in the forest industry in Canada,” the CBC reported him as saying. “They can’t assume that Port Hawkesbury is any different than the rest of the operations. We are a challenged industry and nowhere is that more evident than in Port Hawkesbury at the present time.