Later this year, Paper Excellence had planned to shut down its papermill operations in Crofton, but maintain its pulp mill operations. But now the company says it will shut down the pulp mill as well, at least temporarily, after Public and Private Workers of Canada (PPWC) Local 2 served a 72-hour strike notice. The pulp and paper mill employs 575 workers — 370 on the pulp operations side, represented by PPWC, and the other 205 in the paper mill, represented by Unifor. The company said it has been negotiating with the local since July 2022 in contract negotiations. PPWC Local 2 has been asking for wage parity with other pulp and paper mill workers, according to the Canadian Federation of Unions. “Those discussions have hit an impasse, and the company’s mediation request was rejected,” the company said. “Paper Excellence has begun a controlled and orderly shutdown of the kraft pulp mill and mechanical paper operations.”