Picket lines will stay up while negotiations are worked out for a closure agreement, union officials said after the announcement XL Beef will permanently close its doors.
Nearly 200 employees are now permanently laid off. About 140 employees have been picketing since they were locked out in September 2009.
XL Foods Inc. announced Friday it has served notice to employees that the plant will be shut down permanently within 90 days.
In a statement, Brian Nilsson, co-CEO of XL, said the closure is for business and economic reasons.
“The market conditions and the fact that we cannot get a viable collective bargaining agreement to allow us to operate the facility have caused us to make this decision,” he said.
Production will continue at XL’s Alberta and U.S. plants.
The statement states XL will continue to “aggressively procure cows, bulls and fed cattle in Saskatchewan and Manitoba as it has in the past.”
United Food and Commercial Workers Union officials held a meeting with employees at the Moose Jaw & District Labour Council offices at lunchtime Friday.
Norm Neault, President of the Local 1400 of the UFCW, said the notice received from XL was “somewhat vague”.
“We are having our legal team look at the notice and make a determination of where we are,” he said.
“We would like to negotiate a closure agreement and apply provisions in the collective agreement which allow for severance due to closure.”
It is sad that this happpened, however I'm not suprised, this company has cost these people more of their time than anything. I feel had they been more honest about contract dealings, and maybe negociated something that people would sign, however they were not serious and instead dragged out a decision. I personally am glad that I however decided to leave when I did and land a job where I am treated like a human being, and made to feel like family.Unlike XL Beef which never did, which is why the employees did unionize. In conclusion its sad that people had to unionize because of the treatment of workers at this plant but I can't say I blame them. I hope they find jobs like mine where they feel like family and not garbage.