Missoulian: Support Tester’s jobs bill: Tell Rehberg we need him to get behind forest legislation
I have been sitting by, mostly quiet, as I see people across Montana struggle to find and maintain work. I’ve watched as the state unemployment rate climbs above 7 percent and demand for job training and job placement goes through the roof.
I watched the Smurfit-Stone Container Corp. plant close and lay off more than 400 workers who once had good-paying jobs and were able to support their families. It was heartbreaking to try to negotiate a severance package for employees who had given most of their working lives to Smurfit-Stone. There are too many Montanans who know what I am talking about and are dealing with the same struggle of unemployment that former Smurfit employees are now confronting.
I have also watched politicians give speeches about creating jobs and then do little or nothing to follow through for working Montanans. When I watched Congressman Denny Rehberg oppose new jobs for Montana’s timber mills last year, I realized that I have watched this process for too long. It is time for me and others who want less talk and more action to step up in support of a senator and a bill that puts Montana families first. Sen. Jon Tester has been unwaveringly committed to passing the Forest Jobs and Recreation Act because it means helping our forests and our timber industry survive.
