Vol. 23 No. 12
Dec. 2015 Port of Bellingham negotiating with wood exporting companies [Page 14]
The Buzz Bellingham City Council will advocate for paid sick leave at the state level After months of exploring an ordinance to require Bellingham employers to provide paid sick leave, the council decided to ask state legislators to take on the issue. SICK LEAVE, 12
Business toolkit Are your employees held back by a lack of self-confidence? TOOLKIT, 20 Why economic indicators don’t jibe with economic reality TOOLKIT, 21
O’Connor named woman of the year
A log of aluminum in the cast house at Alcoa Intalco Works in Ferndale. [OLIVER LAZENBY PHOTO | THE BELLINGHAM BUSINESS JOURNAL]
Alcoa to idle smelter, lay off 465
Emily O’Connor of Lydia Place is the Whatcom Women in Business’ 2015 Professional Woman of the Year
Plant needs significantly higher aluminum prices to profitably restart When Marc Norman started working at Alcoa Intalco Works in 1994, the plant west of Ferndale was one of five major aluminum producers in Washington. The aluminum industry paid out hundreds of millions of dollars in wages in the state and employed more than 7,500 people. Norman, 45, bought a house soon after starting at Intalco Works and he thought he might stay at Alcoa until retirement. “It seemed like a job I could have for at
least 30 years,” he said. But the industry’s long term prospects changed. Since 2000, three smelters in the state have permanently closed. Aluminum’s long price drop reached a six-year low this fall, rendering smelting at Intalco Works unprofitable. In November, the company announced that it will idle smelting operations and lay off 465 at Intalco Works and 415 at its Wenatchee Works plant, the only other smelter left in the state. Alcoa could begin smelting again, but prices would need to rebound signifi-
cantly, Alcoa officials said. Meanwhile, the loss of 465 well-paying jobs will likely affect other sectors of Whatcom County’s economy, according to local economists. Some operations will continue at Intalco
Alcoa, PAGE 8
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WOMAN OF YEAR, 4