Up to 230 jobs to go at Tokoroa’s Kinleith MillFriday 22 Nov 2024
Some workers had only heard of the proposed job losses the night before through news sources, which left them frustrated that management hadn’t told them. Most people were going home to process the news. One man was off to the golf course to hit some balls. Oji Fibre Solutions Chief Executive Dr Jon Ryder said the company would simplify operations at the mill by focusing on pulp and discontinuing loss-making paper production. More >> Source: Waikato Times Press Release: OjiFS Proposes to discontinue Paper Production at Kinleith Mill Oji Fibre Solutions (OjiFS) has announced it proposes to take further action to stabilise and strengthen the company, by simplifying operations at Kinleith Mill, its largest facility that manufactures pulp and paper. Chief Executive Officer Dr Jon Ryder says: “After extensive work and considering a variety of options, we are proposing to simplify Kinleith Mill’s operations by focusing on pulp and discontinuing loss-making paper production. Therefore, we are consulting on a plan to permanently shut the Kinleith PM6 paper machine and move to a paper import model for our packaging operations. Manufacturing paper has become unprofitable. Paper production at Kinleith Mill has suffered significant losses for several years and we see no prospect of the situation improving. Due to the complexities of operational changes required at the mill for this proposal, the exact number of potential job losses is unknown at this stage. However, we anticipate approximately 230 roles may be affected. The wider impacts will become clearer as we work through the consultation period, through to final decision and into next year. This proposal takes into account our ability to continue to serve our customers with as little disruption as possible. We propose to continue producing paper at Kinleith Mill through to the end of June 2025, to ensure we meet our packaging customer obligations and provide a smooth transition to new paper supply arrangements. Under this proposal, there would be no change to the wastepaper collection service provided by OjiFS Fullcircle, which will continue to collect, sort and bale wastepaper throughout New Zealand for recycling. Dr Ryder added, “This is a difficult change to propose because of the impact on our hard-working team. We acknowledge the history and importance of Kinleith Mill in the local community and region and have made every effort to ensure we continue operating at the site. Our need for change is in no way a reflection of the experience, skills, and dedication of all the team and leadership at Kinleith Mill.” “We will now enter a consultation period with employees at Kinleith Mill, through to early January, to see if there is an alternative we have not yet considered. We anticipate announcing a decision by end of January 2025. More >> Source & image credit: Oji Fibre Solutions | ||
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