This giant supercrane at the United Sawmill site in Hearst is one of the three of its kind in Canada. The nearby sawmill consumes about 380,000 cubic meters of wood

annually.

Malette Lumber buys United Sawmills

HEARST, ONTARIO — The Malette

lumber company surprised local union

officials in early August as the promi-

nent lumber and pulp company pur-

chased the United Sawmills operation
ere.

The sudden takeover of United fol-
lowed failed talks for the mill’s pur-
chase by the nearby Lecours and
Levesque companies, who have mill-
ing facilities in Hearst.

“From what we understand, the
negotiations for United were com-
pleted in less than a day,“ says Local
1-2995 president Norman Rivard.
“The whole thing caught us com-
pletely off guard.”

Brother Rivard says the Local is
optimistic but cautious about the sud-
den move. He says that the takeover
will create a steady market for the
sawmill’s wood chips which is badly
needed. Malette has a kraft pulp mill
in Smooth Rock Falls, about 100 miles
east of Hearst, which will utilize the
wood chips.

The sawmill is now known as
Malette Inc. (Malette United Divi-
sion). It consumes about 380,000
cubic metres of logs annually in pro-
duction of some 75 million board feet
of lumber and 90,000 bone-dry metric
tonnes of wood chips.

Until the takeover Malette was
unable to secure a steady supply of
wood chips. Its high-tech mill in Tim-
mins was its only reliable source of
chips which could not meet the
demand.

United has had difficulty in getting
rid of its wood chips in recent months.
A shutdown this summer was caused,
in great deal, by a wood chip surplus.

“Pulp and paper companies in this
part of the country have really
screwed around with the sawmills,”

adds Brother Rivard.
Both Abitibi-Price and Spruce Falls
Power and Paper Co. have been unreli-

able customers of sawmills in the
north and have arbitrarily cut chip
production quotas and prices. Many
sawmills have, as a result, become
borderline operations.

Rivard says Malette has a reputa-
tion for buying operations and keep-
ing them modernized and working.

One hundred and twenty Local
1-2995 members at the United mill
site are amongst the Local’s most
active and “militant supporters,” says
the union president.

The local union also represents 120
workers at the company’s Timmins
operation along with 40 bushworkers
in the nearby area.

Maritime local resists contract concessions

NEWCASTLE, NEW BRUNSWICK
— One hundred and thirty IWA Local
1-306 workers have remained on layoff
since the June 1 closure of the Burchill
Plywood plant here. Union officials
are working together with the em-
ployer in seeking financial assistance
from the provincial government in
order to modernize the plant.

On August 20 IWA-CANADA Na-
tional fourth vice-president, Bill
Pointon, and one local union represen-
tative Eric Barrieau met with premier
Frank McKenna to discuss ways of
saving the plant.

As of press time the employer is
putting together a modernization pro-
posal which will seek government
funds to rebuild the outdated ply-
wood mill.

Since the mill was built in 1962, and
had a fire in the mid-60’s, it has not
been modernized to keep up with the
competitive plywood market.

Brother Barrieau says that the mill
needs to be computerized and a new
lathe has to be installed to process the
smaller logs that are being cut in the
Miramichi forest district.

The mill could switch production to
spruce, pine, and poplar logs depend-
ing on markets and raw log supply.
Burchill sells most of its plywood
domestically in the Maritimes.

In late 1989 the IWA signed a four-
year collective agreement in order to
allow the company to have some extra
time for its modernization.

However, since the company —
owned by the New Brunswick based
Da Pow Group — signed the collec-

tive agreement, it has done little to
modernize the plant.

Following the closure the company
approached the union for a $2.00 per
hour wage concession. The move was
Wigtied overwhelmingly by the mem-

rs.

“The agreement was negotiated in
good faith,” says Brother Pointon.
“There’s no way that this organiza-
tion is prepared to negotiate conces-
sions.”

When the plant was operating it
went 24 hours a day, 52 weeks a year.
Presently, unfavourable markets are
making it difficult for Burchill to move
its products.

In addition to a new lathe the
plant’s efficiency would be increased
with an automatic feeder for the dryer,
a larger press, and a new boiler.

Prior to the meeting with the pre-
mier, Brother Barrieau and national
union representative Bob Navarretta
met with government officials from
the Ministry of Commerce and Tech-
nology on June 21 to discuss ways of

meeting did not take place, so thi
union requested a special meeting
with the premier.

The union will continue to work
with the company, barring any con-
cessions in order to get the plant back
on its feet again.

saving the plant. A planned follow-up
° @

—_— cel
14/LUMBERWORKER/SEPTEMBER, 1990