Still suffering from the fallout related to a food safety scandal in July, OSI Group will not be able to resume Husi Food Co. operations that were halted after Husi employees allegedly repackaged expired meat and poultry and sold it with false expiration dates. As a result, 340 workers will be laid off.
OSI has begun implementing a worker redundancy plan (WRP) at Shanghai Husi Food Co. The WRP has been reviewed by local government and the trade union and this announcement relates only to Shanghai Husi workers.
OSI has notified affected workers and advised them of their available options. Since July 21, most of these employees have been on paid leave. “It was our expectation that they could resume their work as soon as possible. Unfortunately, due to circumstances beyond our control, this will not be the case,” the company said in a statement.
Over the past two months, Shanghai Husi has experienced significant financial and customer losses and the authorities’ investigations are ongoing. It is very unlikely that production will be resumed soon, the company stated. A small number of staff, however, must be retained in order to assist with the ongoing authorities’ investigations – as such, Shanghai Husi cannot be fully shut down at this stage.
Of the 340 workers deemed redundant – 226 are directly employed by Shanghai Husi and 114 are contractors to Shanghai Husi.
“We are working closely with government agencies to ensure that severance payments will be made to these workers in accordance with all applicable laws, as well as company policies,” the company said.
“This is a difficult decision for a responsible employer like OSI. Besides the compensation package, we are also working closely with local government agencies to provide support to affected workers, including career development coaching, job search, and skills training.”
