Union representatives, company officials and members of the media were on hand Monday as the Cargill meat processing plant in High River, Alta., reopened after being closed for about two weeks because of a COVID-19 outbreak. (Dan McGarvey/CBC)

Workers return to Alberta Cargill meat-processing plant

Employees at the Cargill meat-processing plant in High River, Alberta were back on the job on Monday at the home of the largest single-site Covid-19 outbreak in Canada.

Their return comes two weeks after Cargill closed the plant following the death of a 68-year-old woman who died from the virus that has now been linked to a total of 1,510 cases of COVID-19 at the plant, including 917 of the 2,000 workers.

Cargill ordered the workers back last week, prompting their union, the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 401, to seek a stop-work order from Alberta Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) and file an unfair labour practice complaint against both the Cargill plant and the Government of Alberta.

“Unfortunately, the situation has not been resolved. At this moment, we have been unable to convince any government or legal authority to have the courage to step in and ensure the plant remains closed until safety is assured. Our lawyers are looking at new strategies,” UFCW Local 401 president Thomas Hesse said on the union’s website.

The Cargill High River plant has the largest COVID outbreak linked to a single site in Canada.  (Jeff McIntosh/The Canadian Press)

Speaking to reporters Monday outside the facility where he and other union members were on hand to greet workers as they arrived, Hesse said it appeared many employees are staying away.

“I have no doubt that it’s going to be very slow. People are scared, they’re not coming to work. It’s a problem for everyone. It’s a problem for ranchers, it’s a problem for consumers, it’s a problem for workers,” he said.

“And Cargill needs to fix this, and they need to fix it now.”

The union surveyed more than 600 workers in four languages–English, Spanish, Tagalog and Punjabi–over the weekend; 85 per cent reported they were afraid to return to work and 80 per cent said they did not want the plant to reopen Monday.

A large percentage of the workers at Alberta meat plants are Filipino, some of whom are temporary foreign workers (TFWs) and others who are permanent residents. 

With files from CBC News (Sarah Rieger, Joel Dryden), The Canadian Press, RCI

Categories: Economy, Immigration & Refugees
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