WE Soda plans to cut roughly 350 jobs as it shifts its Westvaco operation from underground dry-ore mining to solution mining. Before sunrise Monday, hundreds of people gathered along Westvaco Road near the plant west of Green River to oppose the plan, saying it could affect workers, mine safety and southwest Wyoming’s economy.
The turnout was estimated at 800 to 1,000 people, according to WyomingNews.com / Rocket Miner. The outlet reported that miners, union leaders, elected officials and families attended; motorists on Interstate 80 honked as they passed, and workers heading into the plant responded.
Demonstrators called on WE Soda to protect local jobs and honor its ties to the trona industry. United Steelworkers of America union leader Marshal Cummings argued that the community had supported the mines for years and that the industry should support the community in return.
Workforce Cuts and a Mining Method Shift
WE Soda's plan calls for gradually moving its Westvaco operation from dry-ore underground mining to solution mining, according to SweetwaterNOW. The company said affected workers may be offered other roles within the company where possible, and that those who ultimately leave will receive career guidance and retraining. The outlet reported WE Soda pointed to low-cost Chinese exports and the high cost of producing, transporting and shipping Wyoming soda ash as reasons the regional export economics had fundamentally changed, adding that China has added nearly 10 million metric tons of low-cost natural soda ash production since 2020 and is exporting record volumes.
WyoFile reported the transition is expected to result in a 41% workforce reduction, with layoffs expected to begin in January and continue over roughly two years. Cummings estimated WE Soda's Wyoming workforce had already fallen from about 1,100 employees to 850, and said the new cuts would push the number down to roughly 500, per the same account. WyoFile also noted the company had cut 48 jobs in April 2025, including 32 salaried management positions and 16 contract positions.
Union Leaders Raise Underground Safety Concerns
At the rally, Cummings warned that flooding active mines to convert them to solution mining carries underground safety risks tied to shared barrier pillars between adjacent mines. He said the pillar separating two mines measured only 500 feet, asking whether solution mining could erode that barrier over time. Cummings warned that pillar erosion or the release of hazardous gas could put miners' lives at risk, as reported by Rocket Miner.
Ken Lavine, a former Tata Chemicals employee, told the crowd there had been 12 earthquakes recorded around Little America in the preceding 12 months and said subsidence in the area had already dropped 15 feet. He said the Granger plant is experiencing a 15-foot gap and warned that continued subsidence would eventually shut down Interstate 80 and the railroads running through the region.
Workers and Elected Officials Weigh In
Brian Aimone, who has worked 13 years as a WE Soda maintenance employee, attended the protest with his wife, daughter and six-month-old granddaughter, Sophia. He said he was unsure whether he would retain his job once the cuts take effect. Lyman resident Spencer Anson said the layoffs would hurt people from Uinta County to Sweetwater County, while Mountain View resident Scott Flint, who was hired into the trona mines in 1978 and retired in 2019 after 41 years, said trona jobs support the community and have existed for a long time.
Sen. Laura Taliaferro, who represents Senate District 14, urged WE Soda to recognize southwest Wyoming’s importance to the industry and regional economy. Representative-elect James Wamsley, of House District 48, said the region stood with the trona industry and should continue developing its economy.
What's at Stake for the Region
The job cuts carry consequences beyond the mines themselves. Sweetwater County Treasurer Mark Cowan said the layoffs would decrease annual revenue for the State Permanent Mineral Trust Fund by about $4 million, according to Wyoming Public Media, which also reported Cowan's estimate that Sweetwater County alone would lose a million dollars in revenue.
The pressures facing WE Soda echo challenges elsewhere in the region's trona industry. Cowboy State Daily reported that about 400 jobs tied to Pacific Soda's proposed $6 billion Dry Creek Trona Project were on hold, with the company blaming China's flooding of the soda ash market along with permitting delays.
Industry and Public Revenue Context
National figures provide some market context but do not establish Wyoming-specific production or export trends. The U.S. Geological Survey estimated that U.S. soda ash production increased 10% and exports increased 11% in 2024 compared with 2023. It also reports average recovery of 45% for underground room-and-pillar mining and 30% for solution mining; those are general industry figures, not estimates for WE Soda’s operation. These national data do not by themselves measure Wyoming’s position relative to China.
For statewide revenue context, a 2024 Wyoming Department of Revenue presentation listed trona production at an assessed value of 634,855,227, or 1.996% of statewide assessed values. That statewide measure is not an estimate of the local revenue effects of these layoffs.
Workers at the rally said they hoped WE Soda's management would return to the table to discuss phasing the changes through attrition rather than sudden mass terminations. Cummings said he hoped the company's leaders would consider the families affected by the job cuts before moving forward.
What Federal Law Requires Before Layoffs
Federal law requires employers with 100 or more employees to provide 60 days' written notice before a mass layoff or business closure, according to guidance from the Wyoming Department of Workforce Services, which notes Wyoming has no additional state-specific notice rules beyond that federal requirement.
