O’DONNELL’S, N.L — Alma Hanlon of O’Donnell’s appreciates the work she has these days, but wishes she could get back to her old job at the local fish plant.
“It’s a good spot to work,” she said of the fish plant in O’Donnell’s, which burned to the ground in a massive fire in the early hours of Oct. 26, 2018.
The fire required the attention of local fire departments in St. Joseph’s and Admiral’s Beach and gutted the plant, leaving upwards of 80 people without work, including locals and foreign workers from India and Thailand.
Hanlon worked at the plant for 13 years. Owned and operated by Hickey and Sons Fisheries, it processed scallops, pelagics and whelk in the past and last year was handling cod. It provided consistent seasonal employment to people along the Southern Shore of Newfoundland for over 30 years.
Hanlon and other former plant workers have been employed this year through funding from the Department of Tourism, Culture, Industry and Innovation. Hanlon will get enough hours to qualify for Employment Insurance, but not at the same level she’s used to.
She was employed earlier in the summer unloading boat and is now in the process of getting enough hours — 420 — through the provincially funded position she’s currently working to qualify for EI, at which point Hanlon will be laid off.
“But I’ll only file up with probably nine or 10 weeks — you won’t get the 14 weeks,” she said.
In this scenario, Hanlon expects to earn less money for the duration of her period qualifying for EI — from between $700-$800 biweekly in previous years to less than $400 in 2019. And working now, she’s already making less money, as her government-funded job pays minimum wage at $11.40 per hour. Hanlon made almost $15 per hour working at the plant.
“That’s a big difference,” she said.
Business impact
Butland’s Convenience is across the street from the site of the former plant. Owner Chris Butland said he used to do quite a bit of business with plant workers and the company itself.
“Workers would come back and forth, and the plant itself used to buy a lot of hardware, paint and sanding supplies,” he said. “It’s a loss.”
The federal government awarded a contract earlier this year for a breakwater extension, and Butland can confirm that work is happening now, but he has not seen any activity with regards to the former plant site. He did speak with one of the owners when they popped into his store back in June and said he was told the company did hope to start work to rebuild in the fall.
“He said September, and September is here and gone, so nobody around here has much faith in it,” Butland said.
Theresa Bungay is the mayor of Admiral’s Beach, just 10 kilometres away from O’Donnell’s. She estimates a dozen or so people from her community worked at the plant. Overall, Bungay said most of the workers were in their 40s or older.
“It’s tough on the workers, that’s for sure,” she said, acknowledging they’re not making as much money as they used to. She knows too that businesses are hurting as a result.
“The spinoffs were there, and now they’re not.”
Hanlon has only heard rumours in relation to the plant’s future, but does still hope Hickey and Sons can find a way to rebuild.
“I’m not going to hold out too much hope, but I am hoping. There’s still talk, so as long as there’s talk, there’s probably hope.”
The Telegram attempted to contact owners Craig and Todd Hickey, but neither could be reached for comment prior to deadline.
Twitter: @CBNAndrew
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