International Paper to close facilities in 3 states, lay off hundreds | Packaging Dive

The new layoffs will occur in mid-December. They come on the heels of last week’s announcement of 650 layoffs, mainly in Memphis, Tennesse, where IP is headquartered.

International Paper on Monday confirmed hundreds of layoffs related to newly disclosed facility closures in Missouri, North Carolina and Tennessee. This follows the company last week confirming 650 layoffs across its headquarters and a separate manufacturing site in Texas, which are part of a “transformational journey” to become more profitable.

A WARN notice posted in Tennessee on Monday detailed the permanent closure of a container plant in the city of Cleveland, which is near Chattanooga. A total of 115 workers there will be affected by the closure and can apply for positions at other IP facilities, the notice says. The first terminations will occur around Dec. 16, and operations will cease “by the middle of December.” Workers at that facility are represented by the USW Local 1337. There will not be bumping rights because this is a permanent closure.

A WARN notice that the state of North Carolina posted on Friday also noted a permanent closure at a container plant in Statesville. It will affect 74 employees and also is scheduled to take effect Dec. 16.

In addition, the company confirmed via email Monday that it is closing a packaging facility in the Kansas City, Missouri, area and will lay off 150 employees. Employees at this location can apply for other positions at the company. IP will assist employees with the transition, spokesperson Amy Simpson said via email Monday morning.

“IP completed a strategic assessment of the KC facility and made the difficult decision to cease operations,” Simpson said.

International Paper did not respond by publication time to inquiries about whether further layoffs and closures are expected, and whether capacity would be eliminated or shifted to other IP locations.

This builds on some 650 layoffs that International Paper confirmed last week. About 400 are slated for Memphis, Tennessee, where it’s headquartered, and 89 at a corrugated sheet plant that it’s closing in San Antonio, Texas.

During his first earnings call with the company in July, new CEO Andy Silvernail laid out planned business changes to overcome what he called a decade of performance declines. The strategy involves switching to an 80/20 operating model to reduce business complexity and invest in core priority areas, like the box business.

Earlier this month, International Paper shareholders voted to approve the company’s acquisition of DS Smith. The latter company’s shareholders also voted in favor earlier that week.

In October 2023, IP also announced a significant layoff, which affected 900 employees. It included the permanent closure of a containerboard mill in Orange, Texas, and the end of production at two pulp machines: one in Riegelwood, North Carolina, and another in Pensacola, Florida.