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The Honourable David Eby, K.C.
Premier of British Columbia Office of the Premier
PO Box 9041 Stn Prov Govt
Victoria, BC V8W 9E1
Dear Premier Eby:
We write to request urgent action and support for hundreds of forestry workers in Prince George who have learned from Canfor that they will be out of work by the end of this year and for the thousands of forestry workers still at risk.
In addition to federal support, we are specifically requesting that the Province of British Columbia reinstate the Bridging to Retirement Program for forestry workers across British Columbia.
Canfor announced the closure of its Northwood facility in Prince George on July 14, 2026 with an effective date in late 2026. This closure will directly impact more than 200 Unifor Local 603 workers and almost 300 workers directly. There are countless other workers and contractors who rely on the mill as a functioning part of the northern economy and the forestry industry.
Since the announcement, we have been working with Forestry Minister Ravi Parmar and his officials on the crisis facing forestry workers and have been clear about the need for more direct support as they face the impact of this crisis head on. Our staff and locals have also worked with Service Canada, Work BC and other ministries on ways to support these workers.
Unifor was supportive of the Bridging to Retirement program when it was launched in 2019 as a BC forestry adjustment tool. After initially launching in the interior, the program expanded to support thousands of forestry workers as the challenges grew.
In 2022, I was appointed to the Forestry Worker Supports and Community Resiliency Council to advise on improvements to existing programs and new initiatives and we continued to support this program during that process.
In March 2024, the three major unions representing BC forestry workers came together at a forestry summit and we prepared a report that we have shared with your office and other officials. The full report titled “A Better Future for B.C. Forestry” is available at www.bcforestryworkers.ca
On February 26, 2025, the government announced that the Bridging to Retirement Program is no longer accepting applications. The same release noted that “since the program was created in October 2019, it has supported nearly 2,220 workers, approving more than $92 million in funding.”
In July 2025, we wrote to the province again requesting more support for British Columbia’s forestry sector and communities. We noted that “all levels of government must work together to provide income supports to forestry workers who have been impacted by closures and curtailments driven by the softwood lumber dispute, the tariff threat, or other macro-economic shocks.“
In April 2026, the Canadian Forest Sector Transformation Task Force issued its final report. Unifor National President Lana Payne was part of that task force. The final report noted as a priority action in 2026 to “improve retention rates and diversity of skillsets through urgent and robust support measures including income support, wages subsidies, retirement bridging, and a Forest Workforce Advisory Council, amongst others.”
We have also recently directed an urgent federal request to Minister Hajdu in the attached letter dated August 18, 2026.
We urge you to take swift action to reassure our members in Prince George and forestry workers around the province that this program will be reinstated so that any uncertainty can be put to rest as soon as possible.
Sincerely,
Gavin McGarrigle
Western Regional Director, Unifor
cc. The Honourable Ravi Parmar, Minister of Forests,
The Honourable Jennifer Whiteside, Minister of Labour
Lana Payne, National President, Unifor
Dan Valente, Assistant to the National President, Unifor
Mario Santos, BC Area Director, Unifor
Ivan Vasko, National Service Representative, Unifor
Ian Hutchison, Director of Forestry, Unifor
Scott Lunny, Director, United Steelworkers District 3 – Western Canada
Chuck LeBlanc, President, Public and Private Workers of Canada
