Every employee in Weyehaeuser’s containerboard packaging business that is represented by the United Steelworkers (USW) will retain their job despite the sale of the company’s containerboard and recycling business to International Paper (IP).Due to the contract protection clause the USW negotiated last year with Weyerhaeuser and IP, the contracts, pensions, benefits and wages of USW-represented Weyerhaeuser employees will simply be transferred to IP’s ownership. This is the first seamless transition of its kind in an asset sale.
"In this age of mergers and acquisitions in the paper industry, having a contract protection clause is essential for workers and their communities," says USW International President Leo W. Gerard. "These clauses protect workers' jobs, wages and benefits and lend stability to the workplace and the community when a new owner comes in."
The USW represents approximately 2,845 workers at Weyerhaeuser’s containerboard packaging facility. Overall, the union represents 130,000 workers in the pulp, paper and forestry industry.
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