By PAUL YANDALL
TOKOROA - Fifty-five workers are facing redundancy at Carter Holt Harvey's Tokoroa sawmill following a move by the company to cut shifts and relocate work.
The planned redundancies follow the announcement last month that only 30 planing and processing workers would lose their jobs in a restructuring of the plant.
That announcement followed a decision by the company in April to shed 19 jobs at the site.
Yesterday, workers were left shellshocked by the decision to cut the mill's 163-strong workforce by a third and move some work to the company's Taupo site.
Union delegate Megan Jones-Mamanu said workers spent "hours and hours" in a tense meeting with wood products general manager Maurice Reid.
Ten compulsory redundancy notices were handed out at the meeting.
Mrs Jones-Mamanu said workers could not understand why work was being shifted to Taupo - which they believed would raise the cost of the processed wood because of increased freight.
"They haven't given us a straight answer over any of this, no matter what we've asked them.
"Why is this happening? How many more jobs? None of us believe it's the end."
She said the union would meet next week to consider striking.
Mr Reid said the proposal to transfer the sawmill from three eight-hour to two 10-hour shifts would reduce the number of employees to 108.
He said those laid off would be offered positions at other company sites in the North Island.
The Mayor of South Waikato District Council, Gordon Blake, said he would approach the company, the region's largest employer, to ask what its plans were for the sawmill.
"I need to ask some questions as to what their motives are, because from the outside it doesn't appear to make very good economic sense."
Mr Blake said the loss of so many jobs would hit the region hard.
Redundancies shock Tokoroa mill workers
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