AUSTRALIA — Employees ‘blindsided’ by the government’s decision must now consider retraining… after the Labor government announced the snap decision to bring forward the end to native forest logging in 2024 – six years earlier than planned. Environmentalists have celebrated the decision, saying it’s not just important for the planet but for the future of the industry. The number of jobs impacted is contested, with the Victorian Association of Forestry Industries estimating it would be around 4,000 while a report commissioned by the Forest and Wood Products Association in 2018 found there were 1,639. Inside the state’s sawmills on Wednesday, the mood was sombre. …“The community is frustrated, disappointed and pissed off. …The writing has been on the wall for some time – the industry has been beset by bushfires, environmental no-logging zones and a supreme court ruling that found VicForests breached Victorian law in three separate litigations.