NC Towns Hit by Mill Closures Get $4.5M Boost: Will It Work?

When Pactiv Evergreen shuttered its Canton paper mill and scaled back operations in Waynesville, North Carolina, the news hit hard. Hundreds of workers lost their jobs overnight, leaving families scrambling and small towns bracing for the fallout. The closures, part of a broader shift in the paper industry, exposed the fragility of rural economies tethered to manufacturing.

Now, the U.S. Department of Labor has stepped in with a $2 million boost, announced on April 2, 2025, to support those displaced. This funding, layered onto an earlier $2.5 million grant from June 2023, aims to deliver a lifeline through job search help, retraining, and skills programs across 11 western North Carolina counties. It’s a tangible move to soften the blow, but questions linger about whether it can spark lasting recovery.

The latest award brings the total aid for this project to $4.5 million, drawn from a National Dislocated Worker Grant backed by the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act of 2014. This law empowers states to respond to major job losses when local resources fall short. For the affected counties - Buncombe, Cherokee, Clay, Graham, Haywood, Henderson, Jackson, Macon, Madison, Swain, and Transylvania - the money promises practical help, from resume workshops to courses in growing fields like healthcare or clean energy.

Federal efforts don’t stop here. The Department of Labor’s 2025 budget proposal seeks $10.3 billion for workforce programs nationwide, including $3.6 billion for state grants and $335 million for apprenticeships tied to emerging industries. Advocates say it’s a forward-looking push to bridge skills gaps, but some wonder if the funds will stretch far enough to meet the scale of need in rural pockets hit by closures.

Retraining programs have a track record worth examining. In Washington State, for instance, 74% of participants in similar initiatives landed jobs within a year, earning a median of $49,900 annually. Historical data echoes this, with 73% of dislocated workers finding work post-training during past recoveries. Yet, success isn’t guaranteed - many still face a 25% drop in long-term earnings, often because new jobs don’t match old skills or paychecks.

Community colleges are pivotal, offering courses in high-demand areas that can boost wages. Federal ideas, like expanding Pell Grants for displaced workers, aim to make this training more accessible. Still, workers in North Carolina’s mountain towns might find the transition rocky, especially if local employers aren’t hiring or if training doesn’t align with what’s out there.

Factory closures don’t just cut jobs; they unravel communities. Manufacturing drives 12.4% of rural employment, and when plants like Canton’s go dark, the effects cascade. Tax revenues shrink, straining schools and emergency services, while empty homes dot the landscape. Recent cases, like Sonoco Hutchinson’s 2023 shutdown costing 1,400 jobs, show how fast the damage spreads.

North Carolina isn’t alone. The paper industry itself is at a crossroads, squeezed by digital shifts and pivoting toward packaging and sustainability. While automation and eco-friendly tech create some roles, they rarely replace what’s lost. Diversifying local economies could help, but that takes time - time these towns might not have without steady investment.

The $4.5 million infusion offers breathing room for North Carolina’s dislocated workers, a chance to rethink careers and rebuild. It’s part of a broader federal strategy under the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, which ties training to real-world needs. With bipartisan talks underway to reauthorize the law in 2025, supporters hope to lock in more funding and sharper focus on outcomes.

For now, the people of Canton and Waynesville wait to see if this aid translates into paychecks. The stakes are high - not just for them, but for rural America watching closely. Jobs lost to industry shifts won’t come back on their own, and while retraining opens doors, it’s no magic fix. What happens next could signal whether targeted aid can truly steady a region on the brink.