12:45PM EST: [UPDATE IN EXTENDED ARTICLE] A temporary employment agency hired by Agriprocessors meat packing plant in Postville has suspended its contract with the company, KCRG reports. Now 450 jobs are in limbo, and the plant’s future is uncertain.
Agriprocessors hired Jacobson Staffing to help fill the gap that resulted after federal agents raided the plant and arrested hundreds of illegal immigrants back in May.
Now the temporary employment agency says Agricprocessors hasn’t communicated or provided any kind of clear direction. So, it’s pulling out 450 workers, which is more than half of the plant’s workforce. The workers all got a letter which explains the situation.
KCRG-TV asked Agriprocessors to comment on the situation, but the company did not return their calls.
UPDATE 3:25PM EST: The Des Moines Register reports: A St. Louis-based bank is seeking all of Agriprocessors’ collateral, claiming the slaughterhouse defaulted on a $35 million loan.
First Bank says in a lawsuit filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Cedar Rapids that Agriprocessors overstated how much money it has available and that the company hasn’t met its loan payments.
The suit names Agriprocessors owner Aaron Rubashkin, his son and former CEO Sholom Rubashkin and slaughterhouses in Postville, Iowa, and Gordon, Neb. In addition to livestock and plant equipment, the suit includes the Rubashkins’ personal property as collateral.
If the bank prevails, the suit says it will hold foreclosure sales of the company’s assets.
Meanwhile, it was reported today that Agriprocessors, Inc. owes Postville nearly $70,000 in overdue fees for the use of a city-owned wastewater treatment lagoon.
Managers at the kosher meat-processing have not paid their monthly bill in two months, said Postville City Administrator and Clerk Darcy Radloff.
Agriprocessors owes the city $69,603.78 for the use of the lagoon, which sits behind the plant and is owned partially by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Plant managers did, however, pay $5,771 this week in late utility bills, Radloff said.
Radloff said the overdue bills may not necessarily be a sign of the plant’s recent financial hardships, because the city has always struggled to keep Agriprocessors up-to-date on its bills.
“It’s nothing new to us,” Radloff said. “Agri has always been slow with paying. It’s a constant struggle to work with them.”
But the bill troubles coincides with a nearly $10 million fine proposed this week by the state labor department for an assortment of violations. Agriprocessors also is the subject of numerous federal and state investigations, and a civil lawsuit filed in May in U.S. District Court.
City officials are nonetheless concerned about the plant, the single largest employer in Allamakee County. Financial strains on the company could easily hurt local farmers, businesses and co-ops, Radloff said.
(Source: Lipas / KCRG-TV / 9 News)
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12 Responses
This is a direct result of their actions! always be mindfull of your business practices you never know where they will lead!
oy, and let’s not forget the 450 workers who, in these tough times, may have been relying on these jobs to put food on the table –
PLEASE!!! This is so much politics it makes me sick! Wheres all the rabinical outrage to the thousands of illeagle (mostly mexicans) working in the backs of all the kosher restraunts in NYC?? why is there kashert not being pulled when they employ such laborers like Agriprocessors did? Now I have to pay 14$ for chicken?? THIS IS GARBAGE, why do we accept this like sheep??? time to speak out aginst price gouging!!
this must be a nightmare, a horrible nightmare for the owners of this business and their families. may Hashem bring them comfort. may it be a complete Kaporah, if they are in need of such.
It’s time to stock up your freezers now. By Chanukka,meat will be scarce and cost double than now. The legal fees the company will have to pay,if they will have to,and what is not covered by insurance,will be passed down to the customers.Maybe the next President will bail them out.
to lalevi-
price gouging by who? kosher food producers (like agri)? kosher restaurants? kosher food stores? kashrus agencies? who are you angry at? and yes – where is the rabbinical outrage at the chillul hashem this has constituted since the raid in may? it makes no difference whether they are guilty or innocent of wrongdoing. this whole affair is a huge chillul hashem.
Nebech……….Hashem Yerachem.
OBAMA & Agriprocessors works on same principal except in reverse!
Rashi says by Yakov/Yosef, “TALE BEIDNEI SAGID LEI” “A Lion in his time, one shall kneel to”; Yosef was king, his Mazol played up, Yakov had to kneel to his own son.
OBAMA’s mazol is playing so far in his favor, one has to kneel to HIM!
Agriprocessors nebech is reverse; Their Mazol plays against them, so this is leider the result!
Does not look like they’ll survive. I know they’ve been looking for BIG BUCKS all summer and all were afraid to extend it. WHOW!
I wouldn’t be shocked if their new CEO will resign in next couple of weeks.
We need to remind ourselves that HKBH will make sure we have enough meat to feed ourselves even if CHV Agri goes bye bye.
Empire has been talking about getting into the meat business. Maybe now would be a good time??!?!?!??
To all you negative commentors on this post and on the other Agri articles…. Unless you are perfect, don’t critisize others. How many of you hire cleaning help and pay them cash, these are illegal immigrants in YOUR home, hired by YOU. How many of you work “off the books” and receive government food stamps and other benifits? How many of you commit other sins? Unless you can classify yourself as perfectly keeping all mitzvos, don’t judge other people and write your snooty and ignorant comments.
#5 There won’t be price gouging for Chanuka- it’s not Pesach.
no 7 isnt that a fox
I dont like this.
No I DONT like this at all. Why is another yid being the center of the media??? Why is this our buisness to hear all the ins and outs.
Isnt there always another side of the story?! Dont be so quick to jump at them. Something smells so fishy to me with all this stuff. i feel like these owners are suffering a lot from all this and not necessarily guilty in the same light as the media tends to make things.
I just dont like the smell of this.
Can we stop reporting on Agri….?? They have provided meat for Rov of America (aside from NY) and this is not so pashut.