Latest Tolko sawmill closure to impact around 50 employees in Williams Lake

Around 50 employees are going to be without work for two weeks as Vernon-based Tolko Industries shutters operations at its Williams Lake sawmill.

On Monday, May 15, Troy Connolly, vice president of solid wood, said the current market conditions are impacting the sawmill’s ability to run at a higher capacity.

“While our goal is to ensure consistency and stability for all of our operations, the steep decline in lumber demand and upward cost pressures in the province unfortunately make this a necessary decision,” says Connolly.

Employees were notified on Monday that the last day of production at the Lakeview Sawmill will be Friday, May 19.

The so-called downtime will last until Monday, June 5.

“This downtime affects our employees and we do not take this action lightly,” says Connolly.

“We have an extremely committed workforce at Lakeview whose families and communities rely on Tolko and the BC timber industry. We will continue to support our employees during this challenging time.”

Connolly said the downtime will cause about 10 million board feet of lumber to be removed from production.

Pino Pucci, vice president, Tolko marketing and sales, said Tolko’s Marketing and Sales team “will continue to work for our customers and do our best to minimize any impacts.”

In mid-April, Tolko announced shift cuts at both the Soda Creek and Armstrong mills.

At that time, the company said it was still working to determine the exact date the permanent changes will go into effect at the Soda Creek location.