300 new layoffs | Restructuring continues with cuts to grain inspection and weighing staff
The Canadian Grain Commission will eliminate approximately 300 positions over the next six months as a result of a massive reorganization.
Commission spokesperson Remi Gosselin said all affected CGC employees should receive notices by March 2013. Workforce adjustments will be completed by Aug. 1.
The job cuts will affect 230 full-time equivalent (FTE) positions involved primarily in grain inspection and weighing. Seventy others are involved in administration, support and research.
The inspection cuts will occur across the country, including Vancouver, Prince Rupert, B.C., Churchill, Man., Thunder Bay, Ont., Chatham, Ont., Montreal and Quebec City.
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Administrative cuts will occur mostly in Winnipeg, where the commission is headquartered.
The restructuring will see the grain commission’s workforce reduced by nearly 43 percent by August from 700 to 400 FTEs
Gosselin said some affected employees will have the opportunity to move to other positions within the public service.
“Most of the impacted positions … are in port locations, so we’re looking at inspection and weighing staff,” he said.
“But there are some positions as well in Winnipeg … that will be impacted.
“I don’t have specific numbers in terms of geographical locations or work units … because we haven’t had the opportunity to meet with all affected staff.… Before we have that opportunity, we are not going to disclose publicly which geographical locations and work units are specifically being impacted.”
Staff reductions at the grain commission are the result of legislative changes to the Canada Grain Act and pending changes to the commission’s fee structure, which are ex-pected to be in place before the beginning of the 2013-14 crop year.
The changes will eliminate inward weighing and inspections, remove the grain appeals tribunal, discontinue elevator weigh-overs and introduce a new producer security payment program.
Judith Monteith-Farrell, regional representative for the Public Service Alliance of Canada, said affected grain commission workers based in Thunder Bay will be receiving notices from the federal government within the next week or two.
She said 50 full-time positions will be affected at Thunder Bay as well as 20 part-time or term positions that have already been eliminated.
Full-time employees will have the option of taking a one-time, lump sum settlement based on years of service, she added.
Commission employees with 20 years of service will qualify for 52 weeks of pay. Employees with 35 years of service will qualify for 34 weeks of pay because they are closer to retirement.
Most weighers and inspectors affected by the cuts earned $21 to $25 per hour.
“These are good middle class jobs.… They don’t pay a lot but they pay (enough to allow workers) to raise a family and buy a house,” said Monteith-Farrell.
“Having that kind of (earning power) taken out of our community … will have a large impact.”
