XL Foods Announces Temporary Layoffs

[cpallett]

Nope, that's two words. Got them both right.

I'm willing to bet NB would sell you Lakeside cheap right about now and you could then bulldoze it to your heart's content.

[SheriMonk]

I don't have an agenda, other than to get to the
bottom of this recall from start to finish.

You do apparently - and it involves a bulldozer.

You can't right-size anything without a commitment to
the truth first, no matter whether you like it or not.

[rkaiser]

Ya ya Cameron. Just aught a young man how to wash the meat saw and grinder properly today and the CFIA was not even around. LOL The QA staff at XL know what it takes to run a clean ship and I don't personally agree that we need government to save us from ourselves. This is not the BSE issue which was much more complex. They may be bungling idiots as well, but trying to use them as the scapegoat to rally producers behind NB is simply ridiculous.

[ASRG]

Sheri: The Journal story.

XL Foods temporarily laying off 2,000 staff at beleaguered Brooks facility
Alberta Federation of Labour president says move ‘boggles the mind’
By Elise Stolte and Marty Klinkenberg, Edmonton Journal October 13, 2012 8:40 PM StoryPhotos ( 3 )
Provincial Agriculture Minister Verlyn Olson hosted a hastily assembled media availability on the steps of the legislature Oct. 13, 2012. “Our hope is this is a short-term setback,” said Olson.Photograph by: Elise Stolte , Edmonton JournalThe president of the Alberta Federation of Labour lashed out at XL Foods’ owners on Saturday after hearing that the company embroiled in the largest meat recall in Canadian history was laying off about 2,000 employees at its packing house in Brooks.

XL Foods announced the temporary layoffs earlier in the day, citing the absence of a timeline for reopening its plant. The firm’s licence to operate was suspended by federal regulators on Sept. 27 after beef trimmings and ground meat from the processing facility tested positive for E. coli 0157: H7 multiple times.

The company had been working to implement safety improvements with the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and appeared to be within a few days of resuming full operations when Brian Nilsson, the Edmonton-based company’s co-CEO, announced the sudden layoffs.

“I am surprised,” McGowan said by telephone from Quebec City. “It is hard not to see this as another ill-conceived decision by the owners of XL Foods.

“It is clear they were close to the point where the plant would reopen, so why would they take a risk that their employees would possibly leave town? There is a real risk that they might not have enough people to get the plant open even if they get a green light from the CFIA.

“It doesn’t make sense.”

The company’s problems began Sept. 3 when U.S. officials discovered E. coli 0157: H7 during a random inspection of beef trimmings at the Montana border. The following day, the CFIA came up with a positive test result for E. coli as well. Subsequently, 15 Canadians have got sick from the bacteria, and the company has lost its privileges to export to the U.S. as well.

More than 1,800 products have been pulled from store shelves across Canada and the U.S. since the first in a long list of recalls was made on Sept. 16.

The CFIA had granted XL Foods a temporary licence to make safety improvements, but hasn’t provided a definitive timeline for reopening the plant.

“It is with deep regret we have announced the temporary layoff of 2,000 employees today,” Nilsson said in a news release, adding that workers had received full pay over the last three weeks. “It is this uncertainty that has forced the temporary layoffs.

“We look forward to actively working with the CFIA to bring this to a viable and timely resolution.”

The CFIA responded to XL Foods’ announcement by issuing a statement of its own, blaming the company for the delay. The CFIA charged that it has been unable to complete a safety assessment because the company stopped after cutting only about half as many carcasses as the agency needed to assess the plant’s E. coli monitoring capability.

“We have clearly outlined the steps and actions we require the company to take so that we can be sure that food safety controls in the plant are working effectively,” the CFIA said. “The speed at which XL Foods Inc. begins normal operations is solely dependent on their ability to demonstrate that they can produce safe food.

“At this time, we are unable to complete our assessment. We recognize the company wants to return to normal operations as soon as possible, but the CFIA has a responsibility to assure consumers that the plant can produce safe food.”

The agency said no products will be allowed on the market until it is confident that the plant’s food safety controls are working effectively. Beginning Monday, it has authorized some meat products currently under detention at the facility to be sent for rendering, a high-temperature disposal method. Shipments will be supervised, and none of the rendered material will be sold for food.

Provincial Agriculture Minister Verlyn Olson hosted a hastily assembled media conference on the steps of the legislature late Saturday afternoon.

“Our hope is this is a short-term setback,” said Olson, suggesting layoffs may have been triggered by a timeline spelled out in a collective agreement.

In the town of Brooks, one out of every six people works at the plant, and Olson said he spoke with both Brooks Mayor Martin Shields and federal Agriculture Minister Gerry Ritz earlier in the day. Service Canada will be on-site Monday to help people apply for employment insurance.

Testing at the plant is going well, and results should be available Monday morning at the earliest, Olson said.

Other than that, the provincial government can only watch, since the CFIA is responsible for approving the reopening of the plant, he said.

“The ball is in XL’s court,” Olson said. “It’s not within our ability to step in and make CFIA do anything or make XL do anything. When I say we’re watching carefully, it means that we’re talking multiple times a day to the various players in their picture and encouraging them to do whatever is necessary.

“We are taking XL at its word that this is a temporary layoff.”

NDP Leader Brian Mason, who was also at the legislature, suggested things are worse than the government is letting on.

“It’s not a good move for XL foods because they have many immigrants working in the plant who cannot afford to stay if they are not being paid. It’s always been a problem in that plant to find labour,” said Mason, who visited the facility during a 2005 strike and union organizing drive. “This layoff will mean people leave town and look for something else. That will create additional problems for XL.

“This is probably a more serious setback than the minister would have us believe. (The company) has some reason to believe this plant is going to be shut down for a while at least.”

“We are hopeful that the CFIA will bring this to a swift and viable resolution.”

Doug O’Halloran, president of the union that represents the plant’s workers, said they were informed of the layoffs Saturday afternoon during a meeting.

They take effect immediately, he said, and it remains uncertain when workers will be back on the job.

“I’m as shocked as I’m sure the rest of the workers are,” O’Halloran said. “We’re just as caught off guard as everyone else. We’ll be helping people fill out for EI and trying to find jobs for them at some of the other plants and doing what we can to assist them.”

McGowan, meanwhile, wondered if the layoffs were announced by XL Foods as a means of putting pressure on the CFIA to get the plant open more quickly.

“If they are playing chicken with the regulators, it’s a boneheaded move,” McGowan said. “I certainly hope the CFIA will only certify the plant once it is confident the company has completed all of the changes needed to assure public safety.

“I think we were literally days away from the plant reopening. This boggles the mind.”

With files from the Calgary Herald

mklinkenberg@edmontonjournal.com

twitter.com/@martykej


estolte@edmontonjournal.com


twitter.com/estolte

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[rkaiser]

Don't like my truth Sheri? or did you read it. Old cheap plant. Little or nothing put into it. That truth? It's not my agenda to bulldoze the plant, just my diabolical scheme to make the world better for all Canadian Beef Producers. I don't really care if I own a plant on my own Sheri, in fact, I would much rather every producer in Canada owned a share in OUR plant.

[grassfarmer]

Sheri I'm curious - you are telling the same story as
Cam - where is it coming from? When you say
"They haven't spelled out anything. They talk about a
next stage, but don't say what it is, or how or when it
will be rolled out."
Is that info coming from Nilssons, CCA, ABP ? I
haven't seen any press releases of anybody claiming
what "they" (CFIA) are or aren't asking for from XL. I'm
sure its not on the CFIA website, they won't be telling
the media that directly so who is saying that "they"
won't name their requirements.

[SheriMonk]

I think a producer-owned plant would be a beautiful
thing - I'd love nothing more.

I'm sure my opinion on the vertical integration of
this business is well-known... my position is only
that the circumstances surrounding this recall do
not make sense.

Your plant will have to run under the same CFIA
that Lakeside does. It is in all of our best interests
to ensure that the regulatory body that controls this
industry knows what it is doing, and isn't following
anything but a science-based protocol.

[grassfarmer]

Thanks ASRG the article is maybe what Sheri and Cam
were referring to. It tells the other side too - how XL
were again not complying with CFIA requests.

[SheriMonk]

Grassfarmer - I'm writing the article right now which
should provide some more context for you.

It would probably get written a lot faster if I stopped
cruising this forum and got down to work, but it's
been a long day, and I just need a little distraction, I
guess.

[rkaiser]

or maybe our words are influencing your article Sheri... LOL

make sure you take some of that space "between" our words and your written ones --- the universe will guide you...LMAO

And by the way - I truly know where your loyalty lies. Hugs

And Hugs to you too Cameron - it's time for bed for this old retailer - another day at the office tomorrow..