My first union meeting that I ever ran was in January of ’79 and I had people telling me that they were about ready to lose their homes and they were losing their cars, and it was pretty emotional and there was a lot of tough times���. The town suffered during the [1978] strike. You take that much payroll out of this town and it hurt every business in this town. During that Christmas a lot of businesses helped out for our Christmas party, and it actually helped bond the town together with the mill, especially once we fired back up. — Bob Cochrane, former president AWPPW Local #5
After a decade of impressive gains, AWPPW lost ground after a failed 7-month strike in 1978 and joined with employers to return to multi-company bargaining in 1981. But the pulp and paper industry met new challenges in the 1980s. A more competitive global economy, resource loss, raw log exports, environmental regulations, and automation sharply reduced the workforce and union membership. The union cooperated with management to modernize the Camas plant and signed a longer-term, five-year contract. The company shut down the bag factory and eliminated several paper machines. Four hundred people lost their jobs. To shore up its clout against an economizing industry, AWPPW affiliated with the larger United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of America.
Transcript: Interview with Bob Cochrane
Union president’s views : “As I write … we are on strike”
