Dozens of Nackawic pulp mill workers, supporters and politicians from every level of government gathered for a rally on Friday in support of employees and their jobs. The pulp mill is scheduled to stop operations at the end of this month. “It’s a struggle. And the closer we get to the end day, the more it sinks in and the darker the moods become,” Grant Charlton, Unifor Local 219’s president, told reporters. The rally was organized by Unifor as part of its Forestry National Day of Action. Charlton has worked at the mill for 12 years and like the other 227 Unifor employees at the mill, his future is uncertain. “I remain hopeful that we can find a path forward. Yes, the mill needs investment, but we continue to work with the government in search of developing a plan that can attract an investor.” AV Group NB Inc. announced the “temporary idling” of the mill in September, but mill worker Nathaniel Foster hasn’t heard much information since from his bosses about its future. “Little desperate, I guess, right at the moment. Just hoping for some good results today,” he told CTV News. He’s preparing for the possibility that he’ll soon be out of work and looking for a new job. “It’d be quite hard for the family,” he said. Premier Susan Holt, Progressive Conservative MLA Richard Ames and Conservative MP Richard Bragdon attended the rally. “I want you to know that our team is supporting and working as closely as possible with all of your colleagues, employers, representatives, unions, municipalities to take this shit situation and find a good solution and a good way out of it,” Holt told the crowd from a podium. There will be a career fair in the community next week with 20 employers looking to fill vacancies, and Holt said her government will help support workers and their families. “I’ve been looking at all sorts of options for how we can make sure that we’re best using the site, the wood, the assets and the people that have made a strong forestry community and will continue to. So we are going to turn over every rock,” she said. Bragdon became emotional while describing how the 2004 mill closure impacted his father, who was a mill worker at the time. “I remember Dad coming home at 53 years of age and saying, ‘What does a man do when this is all he’s done from the age of 17?’” he said. But he also offered a message of hope. “We will rebuild, and we will recover, and we’ll become more than what we’ve ever been.” Nackawic Mayor Tim Fox said he’s happy about the number of people who attended the rally and the bipartisan support. “We’re focusing in on making sure that the supports are there for the workers and for the local businesses and for everybody who’s going to be effected by this,” he said. The closure comes amidst broader concerns about the health of New Brunswick’s forestry sector after the implementation of steep U.S. tariffs on Canadian softwood lumber. Holt previously told CTV News Atlantic she’s watching the impact to the forestry sector as a whole. For more New Brunswick news, visit our dedicated provincial page.
