JD workers to get retraining assistance
PRIEST RIVER — Times are about to get tough for lumber mill workers. So it’s time for the Department of Labor to get going.
Bracing for the looming mill layoffs in Priest River, the state DOL has scheduled meetings to educate JD Lumber workers on their options once they deposit their final paychecks.
“We have a rapid response anytime there’s a mass layoff like this,” said Bob Fick, DOL analyst.
“It will benefit workers who haven’t got any alternatives already to know what’s available.”
The meetings will provide a rundown on unemployment and retraining services. Possible options the mill workers could look to include unemployment insurance and the Workforce Investment Act, which will pay for retraining costs.
After attending these meetings, Fick advises workers to seek individual help at a local DOL office. They can take aptitude tests and determine what jobs they’re qualified for, what is available and the range of wages to expect.
“Workers are going to have to make their own decisions about what’s best for them,” Fick said. “All the Department of Labor can do is provide them with options and make sure they have access to services and programs we can offer them.”
The first information session will be held from noon-1:30 p.m. Saturday at the Priest River High School cafeteria. Another will be held Wednesday, Aug. 20 from 4-5:30 p.m. in the cafeteria.
JD Lumber announced it was selling its Priest River mill to Riley Creek Lumber last week. The mill will shut down at the end of September, with all 216 employees officially dismissed Oct. 3.
Riley Creek will determine whether to reopen the mill next spring. In the meantime, it may be able to hire up to 70 of the layoffs for its mills in Laclede, Moyie Springs and Chilco. As many as 20 others have already found new jobs, but that still leaves 125 without work.
Scrounging for jobs could prove difficult, said Kathryn Tacke, regional economist for the DOL.
Other mills in North Idaho are trimming down their staffs as lumber demand falls. Fewer unskilled jobs are available in Sandpoint and Kootenai County because of a slowdown in construction activity.
“It’s important to remember that job markets nationwide have become a lot tougher for workers in the last year and a half as unemployment has risen,” Tacke said. “More industries are laying off than adding jobs.”
She hopes many of the mill workers will embrace the opportunity to enter a new industry.
“It’s a really hard thing to see people lose their jobs, and the timber industry is a relatively high-paying employer, so we have a lot of sympathy for folks going through this,” she said. “But we also know there is hope there, and we’re hoping that we can help each one of them find something that will work for them.”