WESTBROOK – Last week’s announcement that Sappi North America would be cutting its national workforce by 5 percent is not a welcome sign for employees of Sappi’s Westbrook mill, but the impact of the layoffs still remains unclear.

An official statement released by Sappi last week said that in response to market challenges, the company would be eliminating 110 salaried and hourly positions throughout the company, but that only 30 are filled. The statement said the remaining cuts would come through open positions and attrition.

“Reducing our salaried and hourly workforce is an extremely difficult decision but one necessary to reduce cost, remain competitive, and support our ability to deliver against Sappi’s long-term strategic initiatives, while continuing to meet the needs of our customers,” the statement said.

The mill in Westbrook employs about 340 workers, with another 50 at the company’s technical center. Sappi’s much-larger Maine operation, in Skowhegan, has some 800 workers, with another 130 working at a corporate office in South Portland.

Sappi’s statement does not specify positions cut from each operation. Donna Cassese, the managing director of the Westbrook mill, declined to comment Wednesday, stating that company policy is to allow comment to come from official statements.

Duane Lugdon, an Augusta representative for the United Steelworkers union, said Wednesday that he believes Westbrook has yet to feel any impact from the announcement.

“There is still some planning going on, and trying to understand what it all means in the end, but as for now, there has really been no impact to date,” he said.