The threat of live export was a scourge on the future of Australian meatworkers’ jobs, chanted some 50 Northern Co-operative Meat Company employees at a rally in Lismore on Friday.
Australasian Meat Workers’ Union floor boss Mark Cook led the protest with more than 50 fellow workers in support.
None of the employees were working because the abattoir wasn’t killing cattle on the day.
“We believe there should be a cap on live export to secure our jobs,” he said, explaining the concern among workers that the trade was sacrificing Aussie livelihoods. “We’re not working today. And in the last seven months we have not been processing to our full capacity. In two weeks’ time we’ll be forced to take a whole week off simply because there is no livestock.”
He cited the loss of 72 jobs at Bindaree Beef, inverell, for the same reason.
Mr Cook admitted recent rain had made the situation worse, with “a lot of cattle going back to the paddock”.
But that fact didn’t account for the closure of dozens of abattoirs throughout Australia in recent years, taking with them thousands of Australian jobs.
“And we’re not happy about the treatment of animal welfare,” said fellow protestor Neil Creighton. “That comes into it too.”
When asked about the jobs pressure placed on producers should live export be banned, Mr Cook and other meatworkers suggested producers organise themselves into their own union.
Bentley cattle producer Peter Neilsen said the need to value add Australian product was paramount to the survival of the grazier as well as the meatworker.
“These meatworkers are dead right. We need to process here. Australia’s biggest asset is agriculture.”
Live export would maybe account for one per cent of our current downturn
- Simon Stahl, Northern Co-operative Meat Company
Meanwhile, Casino meat co-operative chief executive Simon Stahl said the current downturn in production had very little to do with live export and an awful amount to do with the current restocker push.
“Live export would maybe account for one-per-cent of our current downturn,” he said.
“In our view we support free trade as long as it is on a level playing field and does not take away confidence in the industry.”
