Prince George, B.C. – More than 400 forestry workers and their families attended a special information session Saturday in Prince George. 

 

Terry Tate of the Steelworkers Local 1-424 says those who took part appreciated the format. “It wasn’t a job fair and there were no speakers lined up to tell people what they should or shouldn’t do. There were booths and brochures so a person could find the people they needed to talk to and link up with a service provider.”

 

One of the most popular pieces of information was   on how to deal with your bills as it outlined credit counselling agencies. “I had 500 brochures on that issue on a table” says Tate “by the end of the day, there wasn’t one brochure left.”

 

The Steelworkers also asked those in attendance to fill out a 25 question survey “We wanted to know if the workers knew what services are provided and what should be added. We ask about funding and try to identify workers who are not yet unemployed, but who believe their jobs are threatened.” The survey is designed to help support groups have the kind of information ready when it is needed. 

 

 

In the past year,  more than  2 thousand direct forestry jobs have been lost in the  central interior.