2 min read

RUMFORD – For the first time in many months, the No. 10 paper machine at NewPage paper mill will be a part of the rolling shutdowns other machines have been experiencing for more than a year.

Matt Bean, Local 900 union president at NewPage Corp., said the shutdown is scheduled to begin Sept. 18 and last for two weeks or so. He said between 25 and 30 people who work on the machine will be directly affected, along with an unknown number of people who work in support, such as those in the beater and finishing rooms.

Now, the No. 15 machine continues on a five-day-a-week schedule rather than seven, a situation that has been ongoing for many weeks. The No. 12 machine, which sometimes is part of the rolling shutdowns, is currently operating 24-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week.

Bean said the mill will likely be looking for voluntary layoffs. Calls to mill spokeswoman Janet Hall were not returned.

The rolling shutdowns have been an attempt to align production with orders.

In a matter related to about 100 permanent layoffs earlier in the year, Bean said an unspecified number of former employees have met with the Maine CareerCenter and unemployment representatives as part of the process for receiving benefits under the federal Trade Adjustment Assistance Act of the U.S. Department of Labor. Laid-off employees were approved to receive training and other benefits from the federal program last month.

Advertisement

Bean said some former employees are currently attending classes for retraining and some are waiting for Trade Adjustment Assistance benefits to kick in before they begin.

Despite the latest rolling shutdown, Bean said business appears to be slightly better now than it was during the first six months of the current year.

The corporate office for NewPage is located in Ohio. In addition to the Rumford mill, NewPage also owns and operates others in several states and the province of Nova Scotia.

[email protected]

Comments are no longer available on this story