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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsLocked-out Crystal Sugar workers plan 125-mile trek
http://www.workdayminnesota.org/index.php?news_6_5251
29 May 2012
DRAYTON, North Dakota - A band of locked-out American Crystal Sugar union workers, family members and friends will begin a Caravan for Cooperation and Real Negotiation at the Crystal Sugar factory in Drayton, North Dakota, on Wednesday.
The travelers intend to make their way to American Crystal Sugar corporate headquarters in Moorhead by late afternoon Wednesday, June 6, where they will participate in a vigil for productive negotiations. A federal mediator has scheduled a mediation session for June 8 between the union and the company.
Some 1,300 American Crystal Sugar workers members of the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers & Grain Millers union have been locked out of their jobs since August 1, 2011.
The union hopes the eight-day trek from Drayton to Moorhead will garner renewed public interest in their cause to return to their jobs.
FULL story at link.
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Locked-out Crystal Sugar workers plan 125-mile trek (Original Post)
Omaha Steve
May 2012
OP
oldernwiser
(52 posts)1. Deja Vu all over again
Let's see, this union fight will last long enough so that no matter what American Crystal Sugar does it will never remain solvent. Before the 1300 people finally decide that it might be more prudent to accept that they still have a job, American Crystal Sugar will close it's doors for good. I've seen this happen so many times...
Starry Messenger
(32,342 posts)2. "American Crystal Sugar has made record profits in recent years"
http://crooksandliars.com/kenneth-quinnell/journey-justice-takes-lockouts-am
Sounds like they are solvent.
Why did they hire 1600 replacement workers to replace 1300 union workers if they were so "broke"?
http://crystalgreed.com/home/?p=24
It's the lockout costing the company money, not the workers asking for increases:
How many replacement workers are there?
Ingulsrud told AgWeek that Crystal now has a 50-50 split between local workers and those hired by Strom Engineering of Minnetonka, Minn., and that the company has hired 800 local workers. So Crystal Sugar is paying 1,600 replacement employees to do the work of 1,300 laid-off workers? And this reduces labor costs?
How much have production costs increased?
The AgWeek reporter asked Ingulsrud to comment on a Minnesota AFL-CIO news release that said processing costs have more than doubled since the lockout began. According to the news release, a review of the six months ended Feb. 29, 2012, compared to the same period last year, revealed (among other things) that production costs shot up 200 percent. While analysis of the companys most recent quarterly report proves this figure to be accurate, Ingulsrud stated the 200 percent cost increase was not in the ballpark. But he declined to name a figure. Does Ingulsrud have additional data on costs that were not included in the quarterly report? If so, he should provide this information to shareholders so they have a clear picture of just how the company is performing. How much have production costs increased over the last six months? And when can shareholders expect these costs to start decreasing?
How much is ACS paying to buy sugar?
Ingulsrud ignored altogether another fact noted in the AFL-CIO release and the Ag Week story. In quarterly reports since the lockout began, Crystal Sugar has withheld detailed figures that would reveal how much sugar the company has had to purchase. Before the lockout, ACSs quarterly reports included the precise amount of costs associated with purchased sugar. The last two quarterly reports bury those costs within the cost of sales which happen to have increased $137 million for the six months ended Feb. 29, 2012, as compared to the same period last year.
Why is the company trying to cover up the true costs of the lockout by concealing the amount it has paid for its inability to produce enough saleable sugar? How much is the co-op paying to buy sugar from other producers? And how does that compare to previous years? Again, Crystal Sugar should be sharing this information with its shareholders.
Sounds like they are solvent.
Why did they hire 1600 replacement workers to replace 1300 union workers if they were so "broke"?
http://crystalgreed.com/home/?p=24
It's the lockout costing the company money, not the workers asking for increases:
How many replacement workers are there?
Ingulsrud told AgWeek that Crystal now has a 50-50 split between local workers and those hired by Strom Engineering of Minnetonka, Minn., and that the company has hired 800 local workers. So Crystal Sugar is paying 1,600 replacement employees to do the work of 1,300 laid-off workers? And this reduces labor costs?
How much have production costs increased?
The AgWeek reporter asked Ingulsrud to comment on a Minnesota AFL-CIO news release that said processing costs have more than doubled since the lockout began. According to the news release, a review of the six months ended Feb. 29, 2012, compared to the same period last year, revealed (among other things) that production costs shot up 200 percent. While analysis of the companys most recent quarterly report proves this figure to be accurate, Ingulsrud stated the 200 percent cost increase was not in the ballpark. But he declined to name a figure. Does Ingulsrud have additional data on costs that were not included in the quarterly report? If so, he should provide this information to shareholders so they have a clear picture of just how the company is performing. How much have production costs increased over the last six months? And when can shareholders expect these costs to start decreasing?
How much is ACS paying to buy sugar?
Ingulsrud ignored altogether another fact noted in the AFL-CIO release and the Ag Week story. In quarterly reports since the lockout began, Crystal Sugar has withheld detailed figures that would reveal how much sugar the company has had to purchase. Before the lockout, ACSs quarterly reports included the precise amount of costs associated with purchased sugar. The last two quarterly reports bury those costs within the cost of sales which happen to have increased $137 million for the six months ended Feb. 29, 2012, as compared to the same period last year.
Why is the company trying to cover up the true costs of the lockout by concealing the amount it has paid for its inability to produce enough saleable sugar? How much is the co-op paying to buy sugar from other producers? And how does that compare to previous years? Again, Crystal Sugar should be sharing this information with its shareholders.
HiPointDem
(20,729 posts)3. Why haven't I heard of this on the news? Why is some cat up a tree news and stuff like this not?