Alpina laying off 32 employees at Batavia plant

Wow can you believe that..wonder if that comes of the GCEDC job created list..

No,Mark, they project jobs 5 years out...so, they still are ahead, even though they are behind. It's too complicated for simple folk like you and me to understand...just trust the GCEDC and they will make good on their promises.

Typical BS from management. This is the old weeding out process. Letting go of low performers and problem employees. Next week they will be looking for replacements.

wrong tom.....that's all I'm going to say

Actually Tom might be right! At exactly this time last year I was laid off because they "lost a large client". Subway supposedly cancelled because of mold in the strawberry yogurt but a couple of weeks later they looking for more temps. Thanks to Sonwil I have a Job in the Quaker Muller Dairy!

So which part the low performer or problem employee?

I wasn't a troublemaker or low performing employee though. Lol It was like they didn't want to hire people so they dropped them when they should have been hired on. They actually only had like 5 full time employees and the rest where temps.

Seems like if employees are terminated 'for cause' (i.e. poor performance) that layoffs would not be the way to go. The poor performers could just be fired and replaced with (hopefully) better ones.

If the layoffs are as they say - for loss of a customer, then that's a different issue.

I don't have a problem if they get rid of poor performers....that's the way the world is...do what's expected of you or hit the road.

If the issue is that their product sucks that becomes a different issue and it could be a lot more than 32 people losing jobs.

Either way, I sincerely hope that the GCEDC doesn't attempt to blow smoke up our butts when this is discussed. That's getting tiresome.

lol

Since they got all that public money, they should tell us who the lost customer is.

The corporate welfare must have run out

Typical boom / bust cycle for subsidized industry, Sorry folks no surprise here.
"Government subsidies that make it less expensive to invest also contribute to the boom-bust cycle by encouraging companies and individuals to overinvest in the subsidized item. "
http://www.investopedia.com/terms/b/boom-and-bust-cycle.asp

Exactly Dave! Capitalism works. If a need is there, it will be filled. If a product is DESIRED, it will be profitable to produce. Artificially giving birth to business (or attracting business) has a horrendous history of success. Initial success due to barriers to entry mitigated, followed by a realization that without the help, something has to change! Alpina has NEVER reached their "projected numbers" of employment, and worse yet, the employment numbers they do report are largely TEMP workers with no benefits. This is not the story they sang when they were kneeling in front of the Corporate Welfare Gatekeepers (GCEDC). These layoffs represent a 1/3 reduction in their workforce. But who cares ...right? They got their corporate welfare and all the "smart people" got paid.
Very Sad, but not surprising. Some people are very quiet right now.

Marc, It is actually about 60% of the hired on workforce, and all of the temps as well. And at one point, the full-time temps on hand were 40+. Alot of jobs were lost and hopefully people can bounce back. since the Dairy industry is strong still in the area.

You would think that was the logical way of doing things. But modern industry does not like the term Fired. It has negative vibes and HR doesn't like to use the term. They would rather use the term lay offs. When I was Laid off from Kodak in the last mid decade it was with the understanding that I was terminated. Never to return to employment. It is a nice way of saying: Hit the road Jack.

If they don't meet their employment numbers then they should lose their PILOT and pay back any and all property taxes owed..Its called claw back time..Why no photo ops with our elected officials on lay off day..

Mark Staley you hit the nail squarely on the head, along with Mr. Ripple and Mark Potowra. It is all about the temps, a lot of really hard working people left Alpina because they were frustrated with waiting for fruition of the constant promise they would be hired; $9 an hour and working for a staffing agency is a far cry from the initially projected wages and employment. I don't think either one of the yogurt plants have lived up to the hype/promises that were made. I agree, there should be something tied to their performance, " If they don't meet their employment numbers then they should lose their PILOT and pay back any and all property taxes owed."

The lay off letter reads; "....Alpina is issuing this notice in compliance with the New York State Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act ("NY WARN"), to inform you that a mass layoff will occur at 5011 AG Park Drive West, Batavia, NY 14020. The number of affected employees is 32. Affected employees do not have bumping rights."

"The mass layoff is expected to be permanent and is expected to commence on October 19, 2014. As a result, we anticipate your position/job will be permanently eliminated on October 18, 2014..."

Does this sound like a temporary layoff to you? Does it sound like they intend to hire these employees back when they secure new contracts? Alpina Foods "views this current workforce reduction as a temporary but necessary", however, there is nothing about this notice that reflects a temporary situation.

Let's not forget the 35+ temps that were laid off over the weekend because they are employed by a staffing company their numbers don't seem to count, they worked just as hard along side Alpina employees except the temps made less money and had no benefits and they are now unemployed as well. The actual layoff approximately 70+ men and women.