Alliance’s Smithfield employees called to meeting in Timaru

Thursday, 26 September 2024

Union organisers are on their way to Timaru following news that all staff employed at Alliance Group’s Smithfield meatworks in Timaru have been called to a full staff meeting in the town on Friday.

A text message sent to staff and shared with The Timaru Herald asked employees to attend the meeting at 11am at the Caroline Bay Hall.

“We ask you to arrive promptly. It’s important everyone attends … This is a paid meeting.”

Alliance is one of the biggest employers in the Timaru District, where hundreds of people work at its Smithfield plant, and news of the meeting has left many in the town on edge.

Asked about the nature of the meeting, and whether the plant was to be closed, Alliance Group chief executive Willie Wiese was tight-lipped, confirming only that the company had made the request for all employees to attend the meeting.

“It would be inappropriate to comment further,” he said.

The future of the Smithfield plant, and its possible closure, has been the talk of the town in recent months.

When asked in April about the plant’s future, Wiese said: “We have no plans to close any of our processing plants including Smithfield. Smithfield remains an integral part of our processing network.”

Staff members spoken to following the meeting attendance request said they had no idea what the meeting was about, and it was a nervous wait.

NZ Meat Workers Union southern region senior organiser Bill Watt confirmed the union had been made aware of the meeting by Alliance.

Watt said he, along with national secretary Daryl Carran, and other organisers would be in attendance.

The Smithfield plant employed up to 650 people, of whom about 550 were union members, he said. “It’s a massive employer.’’

He had not been told the purpose of the meeting and said a number of scenarios had been presented to him by staff.

“We simply don’t know what the meeting is about. It must be an incredibly unsettling time for staff.’’

Watt said the site had a good community.

“Smithfield in terms of culture is right up there. Their production and the way they’re run is very good. They’re a highly productive unit.’’

Last month, Alliance confirmed the closure of its Timaru and Ōamaru butcher shops, with 12 employees affected across both sites.

At the time, Alliance’s general manager of New Zealand sales, John Skurr, said the decision would enable the company to better concentrate on its primary business activities, “which will ultimately strengthen our company for both our people and our farmers”.

In December, Alliance announced a $97.9 million annual loss that coincided with the company’s 75th anniversary.

The loss followed a record result in the previous year, then group chairperson Murray Taggart said at the time.

He said a collapse in the global red meat markets, reduced revenue of about $2 billion, and the $97.9m loss had brought urgent changes for the company.

In September 2022, Alliance was fined $57,000 for causing “serious harm to an environment of high value and vulnerable sensitivity” near Caroline Bay.

It is also facing four charges that allege the discharge of contaminants into a nearby creek and the Pacific Ocean north of Caroline Bay.

Environment Canterbury laid the charges against the company’s Smithfield plant following incidents related to ruptures in the same pipeline reported on December 7, 2021, and March 16, 2022.