Supremex cuts 41 jobs from Canadian envelope workforce in cost-reduction measure

MONTREAL – Supremex Inc. is cutting 41 employees at its Canadian envelope manufacturing operations in a cost-saving measure as it diversifies its business to include more packaging products.

The company, headquartered in the Montreal community of LaSalle, says the cuts affect eight per cent of its Canadian envelope workforce.

It currently operates 12 facilities across seven provinces in Canada and three facilities in the United States, employing approximately 830 people.

However, according to its third-quarter financial report, Supremex’s revenue from its envelope businesses has declined over the first nine months of 2018 compared with last year while its packaging arm has seen an increase.

It says the workforce reduction will lower annual costs by about $2.7 million before taxes, starting in the current quarter and 2019.

Chief executive Stewart Emerson says the company has moved employees to the packaging business wherever possible and worked with others on early retirement possibilities.

“These cost cutting measures were necessary to improve operational efficiency and improve both competitiveness and profitability in our envelope business as we continue to prudently deploy resources into our packaging activities,” Emerson said in a statement.

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