Residents urged not to despair after Irving Paper cuts Saint John workforce in half

Saint John Coun. Paula Radwan says she was shocked when she learned J.D. Irving Ltd.'s paper plant had cut 140 people from its workforce.

After council's regular meeting Monday, Radwan encouraged residents affected by the news earlier in the day to seek help from provincial resources. 

"I really felt sick to my stomach this morning when I saw the press release because I know how it is to get that news about work," said Radwan, whose ward in east Saint John includes Irving Paper.

"My heart goes out to people because it's very stressful when you hear that your employment has ended."

Irving Paper employees were told the job cuts would be permanent and take effect immediately. The topic was not discussed during Monday night's council meeting, but Radwan and Mayor Donna Reardon spoke with reporters later.

The company has blamed the workforce cuts on what it called the province's "uncompetitive industrial electricity rates," saying increasing costs made it difficult for the company to remain competitive in an international market. 

Company spokesperson Anne McInerney said the decision was not connected to the threat of tariffs, which U.S. President Donald Trump says he'll carry out next week..

Radwan acknowledged the JDI decision was made because of energy rates, but she said people were already stressed by other forces. She expressed hope things will turn around for the mill.

"There are a lot of things that people are worried about right now with the potential tariffs coming from the U.S.," she said. "But I didn't really expect anybody to take any measures this big this quickly.

"But JDI is a very resilient company, so I hope that they'll be able to find new avenues and even expand services in the future."

Mayor Reardon said she didn't know the particulars of the cuts at Irving Paper beyond the company's statement, but she  hopes residents can stay positive.

"Job loss for any city is never good," Reardon said. 

"My message to people is that there are lots of good things happening in the city — we are trying to encourage business and industry and to support business and industry. I say hold fast."

Mark Mosher, the company vice-president, was at the council meeting Monday for another reason — to be present for a public hearing on an Irving Pulp and Paper proposal to convert a portion of park in west Saint John into a parking lot. He  declined to speak to reporters.