Roseburg Forest Products lays off 90 in Dillard
(Update: Adding info)
ROSEBURG, Ore. (AP) — One of the nation’s leading producers of plywood has announced that it will let go a quarter of its workforce at a plant in southwest Oregon.
Roseburg Forest Producers said Friday it laid off approximately 90 of its approximate 350 employees from a plywood plant in Dillard. The Roseburg News-Review reports that the company was able to extend immediate offers to 50 employees for jobs at other plants.
Jake Elston is the senior vice president of operations at Roseburg Forest Producers. He says developers are building fewer homes and that the company is facing increased competition from other manufacturers.
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Company news release:
Continued unfavorable conditions in the North American plywood market prompted the indefinite layoff Friday of approximately 90 employees at the Roseburg Forest Products plywood plant in Dillard, the company announced.
Roseburg said in a news release it ” was able to extend immediate job offers to approximately 50 of the affected employees for roles at the company’s other wood products plants in Dillard and Riddle, Ore. The remaining affected employees will be considered first for positions at other company facilities as openings occur. ”
“After waiting for months for markets to improve, we have reached the point where a layoff is necessary to better match supply with weakened demand,” said Senior Vice President of Operations Jake Elston . ” Slow housing starts, imported plywood, and increased competition from OSB manufacturers are all driving the imbalance in the market. This is an unfortunate but necessary step toward preserving the long-term viability of our plywood business. ”
Operations at other Roseburg facilities, including plywood plants in Riddle and Coquille, Ore., will continue as usual.
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About Roseburg Forest Products
Founded in 1936, Roseburg Forest Products is a privately owned company and one of North America’s leading producers of particleboard, medium density fiberboard and thermally fused laminates. Roseburg also manufactures softwood and hardwood plywood, lumber, LVL and I-joists. The company owns and sustainably manages more than 600,000 acres of timberland in Oregon, North Carolina and Virginia, as well as an export wood chip terminal facility in Coos Bay, Ore. Roseburg products are shipped throughout North America and the Pacific Rim. To learn more about the company, please visit www.Roseburg.com.
