| The Final Word by Helen Roush |
Helen Roush, Vice President, Communications Sciences
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 When companies buy companies, we often see the same story unfold.
Sites close down due to “redundancies,” “restructuring” and “synergies,” and people lose their jobs.
The press releases often say that closures and job cuts were not because of the hardworking employees, they "did a great job,” but since the company had acquired another company, it had to happen, it was just business, and the company will try to work with the impacted employees to help them find jobs at other company locations or offer qualified employees severance packages.
Last year, we reported that Wausau Paper, choosing to focus on tissue and towel products, sold its specialty paper mills in Mosinee and Rhinelander, Wisconsin, to a newly formed company called Expera Specialty Solutions. Expera also bought Thilmany specialty paper mills in Kaukauna and De Pere.
On the one-year anniversary, according to an article that was published late last week, it appears that so far, so good for the Expera employees in Rhinelander.
Rhinelander’s mill manager, Jeff Verdoorn, who had worked more than 20 years for Wausau Paper, said in an interview, “I think there is a feeling that we are playing offense rather than defense now. There is a lot less fear. People see a purpose in their work. … Now that we are partnered with our biggest competitor (Thilmany), we are strong in the market. It is nice to be in that position. And that has led to a good working environment at the mill.”
Business decisions aren’t always easy, or pleasant, but as we all know, sometimes change can be a good thing.
You can read the entire story here.
Helen Roush is Vice President, Communications Sciences at Paperitalo Publications. She can be reached by email at helen.roush@taii.com.
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