12,000 Jackpot
$
SUPER BINGO
($7,500 cash plus $4,500 Slot Free Play)
0
58307
00200
5
Saturday, May 25th Saturday Evening Bingo at 6pm
THURSDAY, May 16, 2024
Since 1916
Locally Owned-Community Focused | On the traditional territory of the Lheidli T’enneh
SHELTER WOES Storeowner steamed
A12-13
Northwood Pulp workers facing hundreds of job losses TED CLARKE Citizen Staff
Like most forestry workers who have seen the decline of B.C.’s once-thriving pulp-producing industry, Jonathan Blacker was not surprised when he got the news Thursday afternoon that the company he works for, Canfor Pulp Products Inc., plans to curtail one of its two pulp lines at Northwood Pulp Mill. The indefinite curtailment means as many 220 Northwood workers are about to lose their jobs and Blacker, president of Unifor Local 603 that represents the 361 active members who work at Northwood,
feels their pain. The 51-year-old machinist has worked at Northwood for 12 years and he’s hoping he has enough seniority to keep his job, but he’s not sure. That cloud of uncertainty will hang over the mill for the next few months until the job cuts take effect this summer. “It’s ugly, it’s a pretty big hit for Prince George,” said Blacker. “It’s pretty bad, I’m concerned about the workforce and all the employees who are going to lose their jobs.” Blacker said Northwood absorbed some of the job losses when Canfor shut down its Prince George Pulp and Paper pulp line in April 2023 and several workers who were closer to
retirement age took buyouts to keep younger employees at the lower rung of the seniority ladder from losing their jobs. Now they face the reality once again they could be heading for the unemployment line. “The average age is probably 25-40 now,” said Blacker. “Lots of the older people that started at the pulp mill are retired now, they took buyouts when PG (Pulp) was closing so I don’t know if the government is going to step in again to help these workers.” Blacker says management jobs will also be lost, but he doesn’t know how many. “They’re worried too, it’s going to affect everybody when you lose
Welcome to Adalyn Apartments
Only ts 8 Uni g in n i a m Re
half a mill,” said Blacker. “You’ve got couriers, foresters, loggers, truckers, the first-line guys. I’m sure Canfor is looking at saving jobs and where they can amalgamate people and absorb them, be it at a sawmill out of town or whatever, then Prince George loses again because all that money’s gone.” Combined with Canfor’s other announcements on Thursday that it will permanently close the Polar Sawmill at Bear Lake and that it‘s suspending its reinvestment in its sawmill in Houston, hundreds of direct jobs will be lost as well as hundreds of indirect jobs from support industries. See CANFOR, Page A2
Top floor units boast 14’ ceilings
2938 Hopkins Rd, (corner Ospika and Hopkins)
Brand New 2 & 3 Bedroom Suites High End Finishing • In-Suite Laundry Underground Parking • Elevator
Starting at $1875 To book a viewing with an application call 250-596-8150 Royal LePage Aspire Property Management
rlpaspirepm@gmail.com
Aspire Realty Independently Owned and Operated