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White Birch closes Stadacona permanently after union rejects offer

The Stadacona newsprint mill in Quebec City which has been idle since December is now permanently closed, says owner White Birch Paper. The closure follows the rejection by members of the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of what…

The Stadacona newsprint mill in Quebec City which has been idle since December is now permanently closed, says owner White Birch Paper. The closure follows the rejection by members of the Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union of what was termed a “final offer” presented by the owner on Jan. 6.

The decision leaves about 600 workers without a job.

White Birch president Christopher Brant said the company was forced to close the mill. “The decision was not made lightly and we did everything we could to avoid this scenario.”

Brant continued, “The mill’s financial situation and the economic deterioration in the newsprint industry mean the end of the road for Stadacona. The union’s rejection of our final offer left us with no other choice but to close the mill for good.”

The CEP union told Canadian Press that the rejected Jan. 6 offer called for a 21% pay cut, and significant reductions to pensions. It was said that workers over age 55 would lose 45% of the value of their pension, while younger workers would lose 65% of the value.

The insolvent White Birch owns two other mills in Quebec, F.F. Soucy in Riviere-du-Loup, and Papier Masson in Gatineau. It also owns a sawmill in Quebec and another newsprint mill in Virginia.

According to the White Birch web site, Stadacona is equipped with three newsprint machines, one machine for directory paper and one for paperboard. The facility has a capacity of 410,000 tonnes per year of newsprint.