12/13/10 - The paper manufacturer Myllykoski Paper in Kouvola in the southeast of Finland announced on Monday that it would launch co-determination talks on the need to lay off 140 employees without cutting back on activities.
     
The upcoming negotiations will affect all 450 employees at the Anjalankoski mills as part of a larger cost-cutting programme. The company’s aim is to improve its profits by approximately EUR 30 million on an annual basis. The planned layoffs would cover around one-fourth of this scheme, says Juha Ebeling, General Manager of Myllykoski Paper. Part of the need for job cuts could possibly be covered by outsourcing of operations. ”This and the potential numbers will be specified during talks”, Ebeling notes.
     
The finances of Myllykoski Paper have been in bad shape already for some time. In the third quarter of the current year, the company’s net operating loss weakened further to EUR 16 million. In comparison, still in the corresponding period last year the profit was flat-lined. The underlying factor behind the situation is the price competition of paper that has been tightening in recent years. Even the prices of raw materials and energy have been on the increase.