HALIFAX—Unifor members at the now-shuttered Northern Pulp mill in Pictou, Nova Scotia, will see their pension fund made whole and fully wound up as the company’s woodland assets secures a buyer at auction for $235 million.
This amount is enough to repay the $37 million owed to Unifor Local 440 members’ defined benefit pension plan.
“This is a small but important victory for all workers as the bankruptcy process typically places workers and their pensions at the bottom of the list of creditors or off the list entirely,” said Unifor National President Lana Payne. “Current Northern Pulp pensioners can rest easier knowing their retirement is secure, and those who will retire in the future can now count on the pension they earned being there for them.”
Unifor represented 220 members at Northern Pulp prior to its closure in 2020 and has continued to advocate for them through the closure, creditor protection and sale processes.
“The fact that it feels like a long-fought victory to protect workers’ pensions — deferred wages that were earned and saved — shows how awful the outcome usually is for workers as companies file for bankruptcy or close entirely,” said Unifor Atlantic Regional Director Jennifer Murray. “I’m happy we achieved this outcome for Northern Pulp members and their families.”
The union provided consistent support to members of Local 440 through the many years of uncertainty leading up to the closure and contested every move by the company and government that did not favour workers in the years since the mill closed.
Unifor advocated for legislative changes to protect workers’ pensions, supporting a private members’ bill that gives pension plan members super-priority during plan windups and bankruptcy proceedings.
The bill received royal assent in 2023 but will not take effect until 2027.
“Being a member of a union and supporting unions is more important than ever as we continue to see new ways corporations will dodge their responsibilities and ignore their promises to workers,” said Murray. “Workers stand with each other, particularly in a strong union like Unifor, to fight back against unfair treatment and this long fight proves that after everyone else leaves the building, the union will be there fighting for you, with you.”
Learn more about the Fight for Forestry jobs at unifor.org/forestry.