Premier David Eby is set to address members of B.C.’s largest forestry unions at a Victoria summit on Tuesday morning.
The three unions — Unifor, the United Steelworkers and the Public and Private Workers of Canada — say the summit is an “unprecedented” effort to chart out a future for B.C.’s forestry industry.
Forests Minister Bruce Ralston and Andrew Mercier, minister of state for sustainable forestry innovation, are also scheduled to speak at the all-day summit at the Coast Victoria Hotel & Marina.
In a joint statement on Monday, leaders from the three unions said the province lost 3,750 forestry jobs last year and the sector has seen a 45 per cent drop in employment since 2001.
Vancouver Island’s mills have seen intermittent closures and curtailments in the past few years.
In January, the Crofton pulp and paper mill’s paper-making operation was indefinitely closed after owner Paper Excellence said it could no longer sustain operating costs, citing “inflationary pressures on raw materials, energy cost opportunities, and a lack of local domestic fibre supply.”
The mill had been given $18.8 million in funding from the provincial and federal government last year in order to keep the paper line running and save 100 jobs.
