Schneiders closure will result in 500 layoffs, says councillor

The closure of Kitchener's Schneiders plant will result in 500 of the plant's1,200 workers being laid off, says Coun. Frank Etherington.

Maple Leaf Foods has so far only confirmed the number of layoffs will be less than 1,200. Aspokesmancould not immediately provide specific numbers.

Etherington,who sits on a city task force overseeing the closure,said many workers opted to retire early or leave voluntarily. He added thatsomeworkers were transferring to the new Hamilton plant and that some employees have enrolled in aretraining program.

Maple Leaf Foods began the process ofclosing the Kitchener plant onLabour Day last yearby shutting down its distribution centre andlaying off 150 workers.

The company will be moving all plant operations to Hamilton.Etherington saystheCourtlandAvenueplantwillofficially closein December.

The company will openan employee job centre near downtown Kitchener in September to help employees find new jobs or enter retraining programs.