MADISON, Maine — People in central Maine are worried about the future of their mill and their town.
A union representative says the mill in downtown Madison has cut production from seven days a week to just five because of a downturn in orders.
While he says there have been no layoffs, workers will take a hit to their paychecks.
“It’s the bread and butter of the town, one helping the other,” Gloria Berry of Taylor’s Drug Store said.
Berry works at Taylor’s Drug Store. It’s a popular stop for workers.
“They’ll scoot in on the way or on their way home if they’ve had a shift change and they may say, ‘Well, I made it through another week,’” Berry said.
But this week is the second workers are facing fewer hours on the clock.
“It was a breath taker, a step back. It’s like, OK, when are they going to close the doors? But then you look at it, OK, if you’re trying to save it, 40 hours is better than no hours,” Berry said.
Harris Merrill said he isn’t surprised.
“They feel pretty bad, you know. It cuts a lot of money off their wages,” Merrill said. “Lumber business is in bad shape, I tell ya. I’m an old lumberman and I know what it is.”
These cuts come just days after Verso Paper Corp., which owns a paper mill in Jay, filed for bankruptcy, citing a decline in demand.
Berry worries purse strings will get a little tighter, affecting local businesses, too.
“Maybe not so much the pharmacy as our gifts and cards, they may cut back that way,” Berry said.
Town officials aren’t as concerned, saying they already weathered the worst of it in 2014 when the mill’s tax valuation dropped from $229 million to $80 million.
The mill took similar steps last year around this time in January, reducing production of paper for catalogs and brochures for two weeks, laying off hourly workers during the cutback a spokesman for the mill attributed to international competition, market conditions and energy costs.
For now, all they can do is hope the demand for paper picks up.
“Just keep praying that things will work out for dear old Maine,” Berry said.
CBS 13 reached out to the mill’s CEO for comment, but has not heard back. The station was told these cuts are temporary but could last months.