The workers had already been negotiating the renewal of their collective agreement for more than a year. As I recall, early in the day, there was a meeting with the company to negotiate and try to reach an agreement—the other witnesses lived through this, and they would certainly be better able to explain the details. Approximately one half-hour later, security staff entered the company to take the workers out.
We know that, at that time, the kraft paper market was in trouble. That employer produces kraft paper. When the company directors realized they needed to restructure and refinance the business to get things back on track, the lockout represented a good solution for them. It gave them the time they needed to try and get things back on track. When they saw that it was not going to be possible, they shut down.
Of the workers living in that municipality, only a very few would occasionally decide to go and work somewhere else. They would get up and go out to try and find work elsewhere, given the few options available in a town of that size.