Cheap imports come at a cost

THE situation in which the poultry industry finds itself is of grave concern, especially if it relates to job losses. The government needs to take drastic action to curb the dumping of poultry before it is too late.

This is what happened to a thriving clothing, textile and footwear industry a few years ago. These labour-intensive industries have been reduced to a shadow of what they were, due to the government turning a blind eye to the influx of cheap Chinese imports, legal and illegal.

I worked for a large textile company for 44 years until I was retrenched. I recall in the early 1970s the company employed 41 000 workers and today it is extinct. This was the largest textile company in the southern hemisphere.

In those days, all purchasing was centrally controlled. For instance, if an outlying factory requested a forklift that would replace 10 workers, the chairman’s response would be to employ 10 additional workers.

I guess times have changed dramatically with the formation of unions, technology etc. The government is waking up only now, to encourage the re-establishment of these labour-intensive industries after thousands of jobs have been lost. Let us hope our local poultry industry does not face the same fate as other labourintensive industries.

When large companies are forced to shut down, it is not only the workers and their families who suffer. There are various other suppliers like logistics and packaging that also are affected. I wonder if at the ruling party’s recent 105th year birthday bash the T-shirts and flagsprovided came from China and the chicken eaten came from Europe or Brazil?

By the way, consumers are still to see cheaper chicken prices on the shelves and food outlets. The government needs to wake up or thousands more jobs will be lost. VIJAY SEWTAHAL

Clare Estate