DRYDEN, ON — A spokesperson for a union representing forest industry workers says northwestern Ontario workers are benefiting from a rebound in softwood lumber prices.
According to Dryden-based Unifor national representative Stephen Boon, Kenora Forest Products has confirmed it is hiring 15 to 20 new employees for a weekend production shift set to start next month.
This comes on the heels of Eacom Timber hiring about a dozen workers in August when it expanded production from four to five days a week at its Ear Falls sawmill.
Boon said the union is "extremely pleased" to see both mills expanding to take advantage of a low Canadian dollar and rebounding lumber prices.
He said Kenora Forest Products will convert to a seven-day operation next month.
"Most of Ontario's sawmill industry was shuttered after the 2008 housing crash and many of these operations were almost written off. It is extremely gratifying to see both these operations thriving 10 years later," Boon said.
He said the two plants provide a combined 250 "well-paying" jobs.
Unifor collective agreements at both mills, Boon noted, will provide workers with general wage increases between nine and 10 per cent in the final three years of contracts expiring in 2021 at Kenora and 2022 at Ear Falls.
