PORT ANGELES — Nearly 200 workers at the McKinley Paper Mill in Port Angeles will lose their jobs Aug. 25, according to an email sent to employees this week.
In the email, McKinley Paper Company Operations Director Issac Rosas said an “indefinite mass layoff affecting approximately 193 employees” will begin Aug. 25.
The letter served as an official notice under the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) Act, which requires most employers with more than 100 employees to provide 60 days notice of pending layoffs or closures.
“We expect that Aug. 24, 2024, which is the end of the 60-day WARN notice period, will be the last day of work for the majority of the effected employees before the indefinite layoff,” the letter said.
“Based on the information available to us at this time, we hope that the facility will resume operations at some point in the future but we cannot say when.”
The letter was sent to employees Tuesday afternoon and posted to social media shortly afterward.
Representatives for McKinley did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
According to the letter, employees released from employment before Aug. 24 will receive their full pay and benefits for the full 60-day period. Employees who are assigned work but choose to leave the company will not be entitled to pay or benefits beyond their final day of work.
McKinley will have limited jobs beyond Aug. 25 in order to maintain the facility in a safe manner, the letter said.
Some of the workers affected by the layoffs include members of the Association of Western Pulp and Paper Workers union based in Vancouver, Wash. Representatives from the union did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
There will be no transfers or bumping rights, but employees can apply for positions at other McKinley locations, the email said.
Dallas-based McKinley Paper Company is owned by Bio Pappel, headquartered in Mexico City, Mexico, the largest manufacturer of paper and paper products in Mexico and Latin America.
In June 2023, the Port Angeles mill’s general manager, Fletcher Austin, said the facility was struggling to maintain its workforce. At the time, Fletcher said the number of employees at the mill was 174, down from 200 in September 2022.
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Reporter Peter Segall can be reached by email at peter.segall@peninsuladailynews.com.
