Potential strike looms at Cargill meat plant

A contract dispute involving greater than 2,000 employees at Cargill’s meatpacking plant in High River, Alta., marks a “watershed moment” for the Canadian beef sector, says a union chief.

“Eighty percent of the workers tell us that they’re still frightened of acquiring COVID-19, notwithstanding the fact that the vaccination rate is pretty high in the plant,” stated Thomas Hesse, president of United Food and Commercial Workers Canada (UFCW) Union Local 401 in Calgary.

Ninety-seven p.c of about 1,400 employees who participated voted Nov. 4 in favour of a strike, with discover served Nov. 10 that “if a deal is not reached, we’ll be on strike at 12:01 a.m. on Dec. 6.”

The staff, lots of whom are immigrants, really feel they’re largely invisible to folks in authority at each Cargill and the provincial authorities, he stated. Hundreds of employees had been contaminated and two died following a COVID-19 outbreak final 12 months that was the biggest in North America, forcing the closure of the plant for 2 weeks.

“The plants are based on efficiencies, so (workers are) jammed into these plants, and so certainly money is an issue, health and safety is an issue — they’re certainly looking for some sort of compensation for what they’ve been through.”

Despite the very fact the pandemic has continued and beef costs in grocery shops have soared, Cargill ended its further pandemic pay for employees final 12 months, stated Hesse.

Cargill stated in an announcement Nov. 12 it’s optimistic an settlement might be reached. It has submitted a proposal that’s “very fair and representative of our values to put people first and do the right thing.”

The firm and union have “exchanged multiple comprehensive proposals that included increased wages well beyond the industry standard, enhanced employee benefits and cash bonus’ for active employees,” stated the assertion.

“At Cargill, we greatly value our employees and the work they do to feed Canadians … we remain focused on employee safety, ensuring farmers and ranchers have access to markets, and providing meals for families across Canada.”

Hesse stated there’s a pure affinity between meatpacking employees and beef producers that has led some farmers to privately specific sympathy for employees. Both teams are within the “grasp of the big packing houses” who management the Canadian market, he stated.

However, there haven’t been any formal statements of help from any producer-led business group “that has demonstrated an ounce of sympathy,” he added. By distinction, Hesse stated there was huge help by the general public, with some customers saying they may boycott Cargill’s merchandise if a strike happens.

The firm controls a lot of the market, “so there’s a lot of speculation as to what impact this (dispute) will have on the industry itself … and the Cargill circumstance has laid bare for the eyes of consumers, the Canadian public, and ranchers the kind of conditions under which these workers work.”

Contact doug.ferguson@producer.com