Employees working for Tolko Industries Ltd. learned this week there will be temporary layoffs at both mills in Williams Lake.
Lakeview sawmill will stop production after Friday, Dec. 13 and resume operations on Monday, Jan. 6, 2025.
Soda Creek sawmill will stop production after Friday, Dec. 20 and start up again on Monday, Jan. 20, 2025.
During this time, the planer mills at both sites will continue operating as required and Tolko will continue to operate its shipping departments, as required, to meet customers' needs.
Tolko managers were giving the employees the news in-person during shifts on Thursday and Friday, Tolko communications advisor Chris Downey confirmed.
"This temporary downtime is due to high fibre costs, poor weather conditions during the fall harvesting season, and weak North American lumber and plywood markets," Downey noted in an emailed response.
"These decisions are not made without a lot of consideration — we have an extremely committed workforce whose families and communities rely on Tolko for stable jobs, and we recognize the impact this has on many employees. The B.C. policy and regulatory burden causing high costs and limiting access to available economic fibre for our B.C. manufacturing facilities continues to impact our B.C. footprint."
