Kakariki factory folds with loss of 44 jobs

BY MARY BRYAN mary.bryan@wanganuichronicle.co.nz
Feltex ? the name has left a bad taste in the mouths of those just laid off from the company's Kakariki plant, near Marton. Its 44 workers learned at 4pm on Tuesday that they didn't have jobs as from that moment. "We were called to a meeting and told we had an hour to get our personal stuff and get off the premises," National Distribution Union site delegate Joe Murray told the Chronicle yesterday. The suddenness of the announcement gutted Kakariki's workers, Mr Murray said. Especially when just over a week earlier the receivers of the failed New Zealand carpet manufacturer, McGarthNicol and Partners, had said the intention was to sell the company as a going concern or recapitalise it. "There's nothing we can do but accept it, but deep inside I'm very angry. The men's faces just dropped on Tuesday. We weren't expecting it to close. "We should have been told of the closure on Monday, when we came back from our annual holidays. The plant was closed down during that time for its usual maintenance, much of which was done. "We've been continually stuffed around. Even on Tuesday, the receivers were 30 minutes late to the meeting to finally tell us what was happening. When they didn't turn up on time ? I knew they were going to shut down the place. "I feel bloody sorry for the guys, especially those with children and or mortgages. Where are they going to go? There aren't many jobs in Marton, and there's a 10-week Winz stand-down." And while he is pleased that workers will get some redundancy money, he is upset that the amount has been capped at $15,000, which ? after tax at 39c in the dollar ? will be about $10,000 in the hand. Like many of the long-term staff before the receivership, Mr Murray, who has worked at Kakariki for 39 years, would have been entitled to a redundancy of up to $35,000, based on his annual earnings. Many workers also face another financial hit. The shares they were encouraged to buy when Feltex went public are now not likely to be worth anything. While some workers invested only the minimum $1000, others had bought up to $10,000 worth. Mr Murray said he sensed two years ago that something was wrong when the plant started going downhill, but he never thought it would close and that so little thought would be given to the workers. He said he would continue to be available to the workers, especially to help them apply for their entitlements from Winz. Yesterday he met the receivers and was told the weekly pay cheques would be paid this week and the redundancy payouts on October 12. The receivers also would provide information assistance to workers . As for himself, Mr Murray said he could move out of Marton within the next 12 months. "I'm 61 and I've lived here my entire life ? Feltex was my second job, which I started in 1967 when I was 21. "My brothers also worked there; all up we gave 60 years to the company. "But there's nothing here for me any more. My children have all grown up and gone, and now I've lost my job. And although I'm nearing retirement, I don't intend to sit around. I've many years of work left in me." On Tuesday Warren Hausman of Marton had a job, but at 4pm he was unemployed. Mr Hausman, a wool scourer, was stunned to learn the plant was being closed. "We had a very good effluent consent and plenty of storage, so although we knew things were dicey we didn't expect the place to close down. "The men worked very hard for their money. We did a 60-hour week for much of the year for a flat rate of $12 an hour and that, plus a bonus based on the amount of wool scoured, earned one about $38,000 to $40,000 a year. However, Mr Hausman considers himself to be one of the more fortunate workers. Yesterday he got work at the ITM timber mill as a yard man. "I worked there as a youngster, so I'm lucky they know me and had a vacancy." The closure of the Kakariki Plant, though, has cast a pall all over Marton, including his home, he said.