Moscow. Jun 25, 2009. /Lesprom Network/. Canfor is seeking labour cost reductions totaling $50 million during its negotiations with the United Steelworkers union, ForestTalk reported.
Canfor also wants a 6 year, simplified collective agreement to cover all Canfor operations.
The United Steelworkers are looking for wage increases and a shorter contract.
The existing six-year contract covering 10,000 unionized workers in the Interior - which also includes companies like West Fraser and Tolko - ends June 30.
Canfor has 13 sawmills in B.C., 11 of them in northern B.C., of which two have been indefinitely shut down, and another three scheduled to go down indefinitely this month or next.
The $50 million annual reduction -- based on 3,000 workers with wages and benefits pegged at $80,000 -- could amount to a 20 per cent labour cost cut.
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