Wednesday 5 August 1998

1 in 4 Maple Leaf workers took money and ran

Craig Sumi
The Spectator Hamilton/Burlington

Roughly one in four employees at Maple Leaf Foods has left the company since the 15-week strike last winter.

Maple Leaf executive vice-president Pat Jones said more than 100 of the 900 employees took the $10,000 signing bonus after the strike was settled in March and did not return to work.

Since then, another 100 or so have left the hog-processing plant, presumably for other jobs.

"We said all along that they could take their buyout and not stay and many people decided to do that," Jones said in an interview.

He added, however, that despite the bitter strike, plant morale has been good. During negotiations, the company had threatened to close the plant down if the unionized workers did not agree to wage concessions of up to 40 per cent. Just over half the members agreed to the pact, most doing so because they felt a wage-reduced job was better than no job at all.

"One should expect a certain amount of residual feelings around this, but overall, morale has been OK," Jones said.

"I think the issues in the plant now deal more with getting new people trained and up to speed."

With the high rate of turnover, the company has been in an aggressive hiring mode. The plant has been adding 20 to 40 new workers every week this summer and Jones said the company is looking to hire another 60 people immediately.

Even more jobs are on the horizon, as Maple Leaf moves forward with plans to expand the plant and add a second shift, as promised during negotiations.

Jones said 600 new jobs will be created once the plant is expanded and new hog chilling and storage units are installed.

Engineers contracted by the company are currently studying how to expand and upgrade the Burlington plant without closing down the production line.

Officials hope to have the project plans finalized this fall with construction starting some time next year.

It's expected construction will take up to nine months. "When it happens is still to be determined, but we remain committed," Jones added.

While Maple Leaf lost some of its business during the strike, Jones said the company has worked hard to recapture its market share.

He said consumers have never turned off the Maple Leaf product, but during the strike, some of the vendors were concerned that the company could not guarantee supply.

"We are back now to pre-dispute service levels and regaining our market share," he said.

Maple Leaf gears up for pork processing

DAVE MABELL
Lethbridge Herald
August 05, 1998

The last steer went through the plant May 15. Now, $4 million later, the city's Maple Leaf Foods packing plant is preparing to process its first hog.

Facility renovations and installation of new equipment are on schedule, says plant manager Peter Miller.

``We'll be ready in early September.''

Meanwhile the company has hired dozens of new employees, although more are still needed.

``We'll be adding about 120 new people,'' he says. ``We've hired more than half of them now.''

They'll be added to the 43 employees who were already on the payroll at the Lethbridge plant, Miller says.

Machinists and other tradesmen on staff have remained in the plant, helping install the new equipment.

Production line workers, idled for several months, will begin retraining at Lethbridge Community College next week for the plant's new role.

Newly hired people will take a similar course in September.

Lethbridge products will be exported to markets in Japan, and Miller says that means the hogs will be handled differently.

North American consumers want the rind, he says, so carcasses are scalded and then the bristles are removed.

Japanese diners prefer rind-less cuts, so hogs here will be skinned before processing.

That makes the product more expensive than other North American pork, Miller says, so Lethbridge cutlets won't likely make an appearance in local stores.

Similar plants are already in operation in Trochu (near Red Deer) and Moose Jaw, he says. They're operated by competitors, so Alberta hogs being purchased by Maple Leaf are currently trucked to the company's plant in Winnipeg.

Many are bought from southern Alberta producers, Miller says. Hogs meeting the plant's requirements will be shipped here instead.

New workers have also come from communities across southern Alberta, he adds. ``And we still need a few more.''

An official reopening may be held early this fall, after the plant is back in business.

College retraining Maple Leaf workers

Lethbridge Herald News
August 05, 1998

Classroom training will help Maple Leaf Meats employees in Lethbridge make the transition to pork production from beef.

Thirty workers will begin retraining Aug. 10, using the meat cutting and merchandising lab and classroom at Lethbridge Community College. Another 30 are expected to take evening classes in September.

``This is all part of the changeover to pork production at the Lethbridge plant,'' says manager Ralph Miller. ``That will be completed in September.''

Toronto-based Maple Leaf announced last spring its under-utilized beef plant here would be converted to pork, the company's main product. The ``niche'' hog processing operation will ship its products to Japan.

Students will learn how to bone pork for Japanese palates, Miller says. The boning technique is highly labor-intensive compared with the way pork is prepared for the North American market, he adds.

Culinary careers program spokesman Charles Parker says special instruction for Maple Leaf personnel won't disrupt regular LCC classes.

``We are pleased to make our facilities available for off-site training,'' he adds.

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