We Need More Bosses Like This

Some bosses tend to gush during the Christmas holidays that they view themselves and their employees as part of a big, happy family. But, when the chips (read, bottom line) are down, they have no problem dispatching members of their extended “family” to unemployment lines.

That’s not the case, however, with Dave Slaughter and Jeff Weimer - co-owners of JD Lumber Co. at Priest River, Idaho.

Slaughter and Weimer have been there for their employees and their community in good times and bad.

In good times, JD Lumber supports 4-H youngsters by buying their livestock at the Bonner County Fair. They regularly donate money and equipment to Bonner County schools to help buy computers and upgrade playgrounds. And they volunteer their time to worthy causes. For the past year, Slaughter has served as president of the popular Festival at Sandpoint.

Many business owners, of course, can brag of similar community involvement. What separates Slaughter and Weimer from their peers is how they respond to bad times.

These are bad times in Priest River.

During the past two summers, the small timber town has watched helplessly as closures claimed the local Louisiana-Pacific mill and then the Crown Pacific plant at nearby Albeni Falls. About 200 jobs were lost. Then, on Sunday, Nov. 3, Priest River was staggered again when an early morning fire razed JD Lumber Co. Another 135 families were left to face a bleak Christmas, along with the loggers who supplied timber to the mill and Priest River’s merchants.

Enter Slaughter and Weimer, stage right.

First, and most importantly, the partners decided to rebuild their $5 million plant, guaranteeing future work in a hard-pressed industry. Other mill owners have quit when faced with less adversity. Immediately, JD Lumber Co. hired as many of its workers as possible to clean up the mess left by the fire.

Then, Slaughter and Weimer hired half their crew back to rebuild the mill. That’s standard operating procedure for the mill. When a smaller fire damaged the mill several years ago, JD Lumber hired qualified employees to help rebuild.

Finally, the partners went another extra mile by finding interim jobs at a sawmill in the Portland area for any laid-off employees who wanted one. They also worked to find affordable housing for the displaced workers.

From the start, the partners’ attitude, as expressed by Slaughter, has been admirable in this era of downsizing: “We have a great bunch of employees. We don’t want to lose them and want to keep them working as long as we can.”

The employees have a couple of great bosses, too. May their kind increase.

, DataTimes The following fields overflowed: CREDIT = D.F. Oliveria/For the editorial board