Viterra job losses expected in Thunder Bay

Some job losses in Thunder Bay, Ont., are expected in the wake of the takeover of Agricore United by the Saskatchewan Wheat Pool.

About 60 grain handlers at two Thunder Bay terminal elevators are likely to lose their jobs.

The merged company, which has been renamed Viterra, has told the workers that one of the former Agricore elevators is redundant and the second will only see a minimum amount of work.

That's bad news for people like Sandy Kachur, 53, a grain handler for more than 30 years.

Despite his seniority, he won't be able to bump a more junior employee of Viterra, because his contract says workers from the company that's bought out lose their seniority in the merged company. He worked for Agricore.

Herb Daniher, head of the union representing grain handlers on the waterfront, says the seniority issue is a delicate one among the workers at the former Agricore operation.

They tend to be older than most of the employees in the former wheat pool, which was based in Regina,yet they're the ones losing their jobs, he said.

According to Daniher, a similar situation happened when Agricore bought out United Grain Growers several years ago. He says the union will do its best to convince Viterra to provide severance and buyout packages to as many senior employees as possible.

A spokesperson from Viterra was not available for comment.

The wheat pool's $1.8-billion takeover of Winnipeg-based Agricore went ahead in June after months of offers and counter-offers involving the two companies and a second suitor for Agricore, Winnipeg-based James Richardson International.