Paper mill strike to cost UPM “millions”

UPM says a two-week strike starting today by salaried employees in its paper division will cost it “millions of euros”.

The strike will affect the majority of UPM’s operations in Finland but does not include the timber, plywood and ProFi businesses.

“When the strike begins, we will probably start to run down paper mills within a couple of days,” said Jyrki Ovaska, president of UPM’s Paper Business Group.

The strike, called by the union Pro, only affects UPM – something which has been heavily criticised by the Finnish Forest Industries Federation (FFIF).

“We cannot accept industrial action that targets a single company when the aim is to promote goals, which will apply to the entire industry,” said Timo Jaatinen, FFIF director -general.

“It is also extremely unfortunate that such action is allowed to cause substantial economic damages and erode the Finnish forest industry’s reputation for being a dependable supplier in a situation where the markets last year began to recover.”

UPM said repeated strike action would make it consider relocating operations to other countries “where the risk of strike is lower”.

FFIF and Pro have negotiated on salaries and labour contracts since the beginning of the year. Pro has demanded a 3.5% rise in salary and a transfer into an “old-fashioned” pay system, according to UPM.

“The FFIF considers the salary request oversized in comparison to the other wage settlements completed this spring,” said FFIF.