Two companies in Finland's forestry sector have announced the beginning of restructuring talks with staff representatives, which could see hundreds of staff facing temporary layoffs.
In a press statement on Monday, Metso said the talks would mostly focus on an aggregates plant in Tampere, although other functions and personnel groups related to the aggregates business in Finland would be affected too.
In total, the talks will include about 560 employees, the firm said, with temporary layoffs likely to last for about 90 days for each worker. It added that the furloughs would be rolled out over the last few months of this year and during the spring of next year.
"The order backlog at Metso's Aggregates Tampere plant is low, and finished product inventories are at a high level. The autumn is typically a slower season for the aggregates business, so no rapid demand improvement is expected before year-end," the statement said.
The company added that the exact number of layoffs will depend on the outcome of the negotiations, but did not rule out all 560 employees facing some temporary adjustment to their working hours.
UPM also begins furlough talks
Separately, last Friday, UPM also announced the start of restructuring talks at its Pellos plywood mill plant in Mikkeli.
The talks will affect about 580 employees, the company said, with any temporary layoffs agreed as part of the negotiations lasting up to 90 days.
"The market situation for spruce plywood has deteriorated, so we are preparing to limit production," UPM Plywood's Production Director, Juhani Tenhunen, said in the firm's statement.
The company's plywood plants have been impacted in particular by a downturn in the construction industry across Europe, according to Tenhunen.
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