MADAWASKA, Maine (AP) -- A union representative at Fraser Papers Inc.'s mill in Madawaska, Maine, is expressing dismay that corporate executives were given hundreds of thousands of dollars in bonuses while the company was on the verge of bankruptcy.
The Bangor Daily News says six top-level executives at the Toronto-based company received bonuses totaling nearly $500,000 in 2008.
Duane Lugdon, Maine's United Steelworkers union representative, said it's troubling that bonuses would be paid out when it was clear the company was in financial trouble. Fraser Papers filed for bankruptcy last June.
He said it's particularly bothersome following last week's vote where unionized workers at the Madawaska mill approved a three-year contract calling for an 8.5 percent pay cut the first year.
