BY SUSAN BERMAN
BURLINGTON, Ontario - Under the threat of a plant closure, workers at the Maple Leaf Foods hog-processing plant here voted on March 6 to accept the company's contract demands and return to work. The 900 members of the United Food and Commercial Workers have been on strike since mid-November.

At the request of the company, the government ordered a vote on the company's "final offer." It includes wage cuts of up to 40 percent, the introduction of part-time work, and forcing workers to pay for washroom breaks exceeding 20 minutes per week. Maple Leaf owner Michael McCain had announced the previous week he would close the plant by March 20 if workers voted down the contract. The company closed its plant in Edmonton in December in face of a strike by 900 workers there. The Burlington meatpackers voted 454 to 368 to accept the offer.

In order to sweeten the deal, McCain raised the contract signing bonus or "buyout" terms from Can$45 to Can$50 (Can$1 = US$0.70) for every month worked in the plant and backed down on his demand to eliminate the seniority of workers returning to the job. All workers were guaranteed a minimum $10,000 buyout, whether or not they plan to return to work. Many workers got other jobs during the course of the strike.

"My buyout is $17,000. If I take that and run I'm just creating problems for my kids and other kids who come later. My heart's not for sale," declared Tony Hocevar at the picket shack after the vote results were announced. Hocevar voted against the buyout deal.

About 75 workers gathered for hours that night outside the plant. Fires burned at several gates as workers discussed and debated the results. Many were angry. Some were silent. Most of the workers Militant reporters met voted no on the contract. "He's like a scrooge. But the three ghosts haven't visited him yet," said Ken Merrick.

Mario Roque has worked in the plant for more than 23 years. "The company bought the votes," Roque said. "It's not easy for everybody, mostly because everyone's financially desperate." Some of the strikers have already had their houses foreclosed on by the banks. There are many couples working at the plant which makes things more difficult. Maple Leaf is Burlington's largest employer.

Many workers said that the concessions would now set a trend in the industry and potentially have an impact on other industries. "This is a great day for the industry in eastern Canada," said company executive vice president Pat Jones, "We now have a cost-competitive plant." Throughout the strike Maple Leaf bosses waged an expensive media campaign arguing they had to lower labor costs to compete with pork producers in the United States.

One worker, with six years on the job, who did not want to be named, said he voted for the contract and has another job. He won't be returning to Maple Leaf. He believes working conditions will be hell in there now.

The day before the vote, about 450 workers attended a union meeting where the negotiating committee urged a "No" vote on the contract. UFCW members from the locked-out locals at Maple Leaf plants in Stoney Creek, Ontario, and North Battleford, Saskatchewan, spoke at the meeting urging the Burlington local to vote No.

After the union meeting there was a rally of 300 people on the Burlington picket line where a busload of Stoney Creek UFCW members came to bolster those who were opposed to a concession contract by wearing vests that said, "Vote No. My union's not 4 sale." Gayle Stenrud, a laborer on the bacon line from the Saskatchewan plant said, "I'm here bringing solidarity from the locked-out Saskatchewan local and say the buyout offer is a real slap in the face."

In the weeks leading up to the vote, discussions on the picket lines were widespread on how to strengthen the strike. Many workers expressed the opinion that union officials had conceded too much to the company - allowing meat and equipment out of the plant after the picket lines went up. The equipment is being used to process pork in other facilities.

The discussions continued at the fire barrels after the vote on whether or not this fight could have been won. Some workers thought the plant should have been occupied. Others thought the McCain family, which heads one of the biggest food empires in Canada, was simply too big to defeat. There were many discussions on how the entire labor movement needed to bring its weight to bear on the strike in order to win. "I'll tell you one thing," insisted Roque. "If there's ever a plant, big or small, no matter where, that goes on strike, I will support them."

Workers will probably begin returning to work in two to three weeks.

Susan Berman is a member of United Steelworkers of America Local 5338. John Steele, a member of the International Association of Machinists, and Rosemary Ray contributed to this article.  
 
 
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