Owen Sound printing plant to close in January; about 360 jobs lost

TC Transcontinental will close its printing plant in Owen Sound at the end of January 2027, the company announced Wednesday, Oct. 14. The closure will put about 360 people out of work.

In a news release issued from Montréal on Oct. 14, the company said the closure is part of "the optimization of its integrated national printing network."

"Continued productivity improvements across our printing network, combined with changes in our product mix, enable us to consolidate production in other facilities. As a result, we have made the difficult decision to close our Owen Sound plant," Patrick Brayley, the company's chief operating officer, said in the release.

"We sincerely regret the impact on our approximately 360 employees, their families and the Owen Sound community," Brayley said in the release. The company says it will support employees "including through career transition services."

Told at a meeting

Employees learned the news at a meeting Wednesday afternoon at the Harry Lumley Bayshore Community Centre, Bayshore Broadcasting reported on Oct. 14.

Brayley told Bayshore that work now done at the Owen Sound plant will be transferred to five other locations in the company's network. The company has retained a career services firm to help employees, and some jobs will be available elsewhere in the company, he told the station. Asked about the property, Brayley told Bayshore that "selling the property is a real possibility."

Owen Sound Mayor Ian Boddy told Bayshore the closure is "pretty sad news."

"Anytime anybody loses a job in the community, when several people lose a job, it affects everybody around them," Boddy told the station.

Workers: "expecting it"

For workers, the news was not a complete surprise, but it was not confirmed until the company told them in person.

"We've kind of been expecting it, but did not know anything for sure till the meeting on Wednesday," said a longtime employee who lives in Chatsworth. The employee, who has worked at the plant for more than 35 years, spoke to the Banner on condition of anonymity. Staff were told about the meeting by text the day before, they said.

"No severance information has been given to us yet," the employee said, adding that the company is "having smaller meetings with each shift."

The employee said their own family "will be ok," and that they are looking forward to no longer working nights and weekends. Others face a harder road: "There are a lot of young families as well as families with both parents working there."

They also voiced frustration with people online "spreading false information for 'clicks and likes'" before workers had been told anything. "RBW has been a part of this community since 1853," they said.

A long local history

According to the company's release, the plant has been part of TC Transcontinental since 1992, and the company operated it as Transcontinental RBW Graphics. The RBW name comes from the Owen Sound printer Richardson, Bond & Wright. During the Second World War the firm printed Canadian food ration books, according to Grey Roots Museum & Archives.

The Owen Sound plant was not part of TC Transcontinental's sale of its packaging business. The company sold that division to Cincinnati-based ProAmpac Holdings Inc. for about $2.1 billion in a deal announced Dec. 8, 2025, and completed March 6, 2026, according to TC's news releases. TC's investor materials list Owen Sound among the 17 sites of its Retail Services and Printing sector, and its Oct. 14 release describes the closure as part of the "optimization of its integrated national printing network."

MPP: closure "deeply disappointing"

Bruce-Grey-Owen Sound MPP Paul Vickers called the closure "deeply disappointing" in a statement his office sent to the Banner on Oct. 15.

"The closure of this long-standing plant is deeply disappointing, particularly given its importance to the Economy of Owen Sound and the surrounding communities and the nearly 400 workers and families affected," the statement says. TC Transcontinental's release puts the number of affected employees at approximately 360.

"We have been in contact with the Premier's Office, and the Premier is aware of the situation," the statement says. "Our government stands ready to support workers as they explore new careers, access retraining, and pursue new opportunities."

The statement says the MPP will work with all levels of government, Grey County, the City of Owen Sound, the area's member of Parliament and community partners such as Georgian College to make sure affected workers get support.

What it means for Chatsworth

The plant is in Owen Sound, just north of the township, and its jobs are regional. But no figures have been published on where the plant's employees live, so it isn't known how many Chatsworth residents are affected.

What isn't known yet

As of Oct. 15, these questions remain open in the sources the Banner reviewed:

• How many affected workers live in Chatsworth or elsewhere in Grey County. The company has not said.
• Which five plants will take the work. The company's release doesn't name them.
• Whether the workers are unionized. The Banner found no union or local named in the company's release or in Bayshore's report.
• Severance and timing. Brayley told Bayshore the company will be "respectful with severance arrangements," but details have not been made public. In an interview with the Owen Sound Current, Brayley said most of the roughly 360 affected employees will stay on through January. He told the Owen Sound Sun Times the company aims to keep the plant "quite busy" until the end of January, depending on customer needs.
• The company's and the county's answers. The Banner has put questions to TC Transcontinental and Grey County and had not received answers as of Thursday morning. Vickers's office replied with the statement above.

The company's release says about 40 per cent of its employees work in Ontario, and that it remains present in Vaughan, Aurora, Brampton, Paris and Mississauga.

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