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Cascade Steel mill lays off 30 more workers

Business | Sat, 11/14/2009 - 9:06 am | Read 3193 | Commented 11 | Emailed 2
Tags: McMinnville

Cascade Steel Mill officials remain confident the construction market will turn around and the demand for steel will follow.

News-Register file photo

Cascade Steel Rolling Mills announced another round of layoffs Friday morning, its fourth in the last 12 months.

Before the series of layoffs began last December, the mill workforce was about 550. It is now about 400.

President Jeff Dyck said the McMinnville steel mill was laying off 30 workers in a range of departments, including information technology, finance and human resources as well as production. He said the cuts affect some longtime employees, not just recent hires.

Since the economy crashed late last year, the mill, owned by Portland-based Schnitzer Steel Industries, has implemented a series of cost-containment measures. However, it has attempted to avoid cuts that would limit its ability to respond quickly to any market turnaround.

Wherever possible, Dyck said, Cascade has moved up maintenance projects, scheduled training sessions and instituted temporary furloughs as an alternative to outright layoffs. But he said the steel market continues to be extremely soft.

So far, the company has detected no uptick in either residential or commercial construction, he said. And unlike some others, the steel industry is getting no traction from federal or state stimulus efforts, he said.

Dyck called the layoffs "unprecedented" and "really unfortunate," noting, "The action this week was not easy or painless."

He said, "We don't have a crystal ball," but company officials remain confident the economy is on the road to recovery, which will eventually trigger renewed demand for steel. They are making every effort to position the company to respond quickly and effectively, he said.

Schnitzer's most recent quarterly report, for the period ending Aug. 31, the end of its fiscal year, reflected the sour economy. Cascade's parent company reported revenue of $556 million, less than half the $1.3 billion it reported for the same quarter last year.

Last month, President and Chief Executive Officer Tamara Lundgren said weak demand for finished steel products on the West Coast was continuing to drive prices downward. "As a result, first quarter margins are expected to be negative," she said.

That quarter ends Nov. 30, but results won't be available until some time in December.

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Comments (11)

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Sun, 11/22/2009 - 4:39pm - Posted by: mungfam

I was only referring to this portion of your initial comment that lafayette1 addressed:
"They have had a free ride for too long now."
I would have no argument with the "... share the pain portion". But this was a broad statement and inappropriate in my view.

Sat, 11/21/2009 - 1:07am - Posted by: JB23

mungfam - My remarks are absolutlely appropriate. You may not like how they were stated but they are never the less true. There is nothing wrong in stating that it is only fair for everyone to share the pain.

Fri, 11/20/2009 - 2:17pm - Posted by: mungfam

lafayette1:
I am glad you don't work at Cascade and hope you never find your way to an HR position at unionized facility because your attitude will certainly cost the company and its employees dearly. The Steelworkers posted a statement on its website when this story broke. Here:
"...It is never good to see people, Union or Management, lose their livelihoods. Next month 73 of our brothers and sisters will lose their jobs permanently without recall rights. This is a sad time for all Cascade employees and our hope is that soon all will be back to work..."

JB23: your remarks are inappropriate and I agree with lafayette1 on this and it bears repeating:
"It's a sad day when anyone loses their job. My heart goes out to all of those affected by the recession at Cascade."

Mon, 11/16/2009 - 12:12pm - Posted by: JB23

Good company management will keep its best workers. That is good policy AND fair!

Mon, 11/16/2009 - 11:49am - Posted by: kona

Good company management will lay off people in the best interest of the company. "Fairness" is an ingredient in layoffs, but not the primary criteria.

Sun, 11/15/2009 - 11:26pm - Posted by: JB23

lafayette1 - First, I was stating a fact, like you did, that I don't work there or belong to the union. I did not imply that is what you said. Since you did state that you have worked in "similar environments", you must know that many of the times fairness does not play a role in who gets laid off. Companies will lay off some of their best workers for a variety of reasons. It stands to reason that if work on one end of the company is slow or non-existant then the work on the other end is too. You don't need to keep the same size staff of office people (buyers, accountants, HR staff) if there is no work in the mill. Some of these people have kept their jobs because of who they know, not what they do. Over the years they have learned to play the game very well. This is a small town where everybody knows somebody that knows. Word spreads fast in McMinnville. You don't have to work in a company to know what goes on there. And yes, it is a sad day when people lose their jobs.

Sun, 11/15/2009 - 9:38pm - Posted by: lafayette1

I didn't say you worked in the union or at Cascade. Since you don't (by your own words), how can you make the comment that those laid off have "had a free ride for too long now"?

It's a sad day when anyone loses their job. My heart goes out to all of those affected by the recession at Cascade.

Sun, 11/15/2009 - 3:43am - Posted by: JB23

lafayette1 - I don't work at Cascade either, nor am I a union member. Never have been. You don't know whether I'm in management or not which reaffirms "My" position that you don't know what you're talking about!

Sun, 11/15/2009 - 12:27am - Posted by: lafayette1

I don't work at Cascade, but I have experience in similar environments. I have never heard of any management personnel saying "Well, it's about time they laid off the everyday joe's". This is the standard union mentality that reaffirms my position that unions have no relevance in today's world.

Sat, 11/14/2009 - 5:26pm - Posted by: GG

Amen JB23

Sat, 11/14/2009 - 11:21am - Posted by: JB23

It's about time they started to lay off some in office departments instead of just the actual everyday joe. They have had a free ride for too long now.