BOONEVILLE : Workers weigh future
Posted on Friday, March 28, 2008
BOONEVILLE — Jered Lloyd emerged from a meeting with Cargill Meat Solution officials Thursday unsure of his future — just one of hundreds of employees wondering what to do next.
Cargill officials met with the 800 employees who worked at the beef processing plant that was destroyed Sunday by a fire. The employees can transfer to another Cargill plant in the country or take a severance package and try to get another job locally.
Lloyd, a Booneville resident who worked at the plant for about six months, said he likes working for Cargill but wants to stay in the area because his wife has family there.
“For people who have families, it would be hard to adjust to new facilities and to new people,” Lloyd said.
That was a common concern among employees after the meeting. Many of them either were born in the Booneville area or have lived there for years. The company hasn’t decided whether to rebuild the plant.
Phillip Howard of Booneville doesn’t think he will relocate. His family is in the Booneville area and his children like the schools and have all their friends there.
He said he has had several job offers, most of them in Fort Smith about 40 miles away. Commuting to Fort Smith might not be a financial burden if he could carpool, he said.
During the meeting, which was closed to all but Cargill employees, company officials told employees they had the option to transfer permanently to Cargill turkey plants in Springdale, California, Mo., or Dayton, Va., company spokesman Mark Klein said.
The company would pay moving expenses, he said: $ 2, 000 for a move to Springdale or Missouri, or $ 3, 000 for the move to Virginia.
A job fair with officials from those plants will be held today for company employees at the First Baptist Church Family Life Center in Booneville, Klein said.
Employees will have another job-hunting opportunity at a job fair sponsored by the South Logan County Chamber of Commerce and the Booneville Development Corp. That fair is scheduled for 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. April 3-4 at the First Baptist Church Family Life Center.
If employees do not want to transfer, Klein said, the company is offering a severance package tied to length of service with the company. Those with 20 years or more would receive six weeks ’ pay. Those with less than a year would receive two weeks’ pay.
Those who accept the severance package would have a 30-day extension on their health insurance.
Employees will have to decide on an option by early next week, Klein said.
Some employees said Cargill’s offer was less than anticipated.
Fourteen-year employee Kathy Franklin of Booneville said she doesn’t believe that she’s received enough information from Cargill about the future of the plant in Booneville. The 30-day extension on insurance isn’t long enough, she said, and there isn’t much time to make a decision.
“They said if you want to relocate, it’s now or never,” she said. “I think they left us hanging.” Klein said, “We know it’s not enough. But we hope it will help people through the transition.” He acknowledged there are several unanswered questions, including whether the company will rebuild. Company officials still have not been able to examine the rubble because fire officials haven’t finished their investigation, Klein said. Once company officials have a chance to inspect the site, it will be about 30 days before company officials decide whether to rebuild, he said.
“If we break ground today, it’d be 10 to 12 months before it was up and running,” Klein said.
Cargill officials are pleased by support — including an offer of free land on which to build a new plant — proposed by city officials on Wednesday, Klein said.
The company’s focus on Thursday, he said, was to make certain that Cargill employees were able to find work. Employees were offered temporary jobs Thursday at various Cargill plants and by competitors, he said.
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