Maui Pine to shut down by end of year (285 employees will be laid off)

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.unions.org/home/union/news/?title=Maui%20Pine%20to%20shut%20down%20by%20end%20of%20year&id=http://alexbob45.livejournal.com/3861.html


Maui Pine to shut down by end of year

* Nov. 12th, 2009 at 10:43 AM

Several operations at Kapalua Resort will be transferred to other operators, including Outrigger Hotels & Resorts, which will manage the 206-unit Kapalua Villas.

In all, about 285 employees will be laid off. Another 133 will be offered employment at ML&P partner companies.

ML&P board Chairman Warren Haruki said Maui Pine has lost $115 million since 2002.

"Unfortunately, despite our exhaustive efforts to revitalize the pineapple business over the last few years and efforts to keep agriculture jobs on Maui, market conditions have not improved and pineapple operations at MPC are not financially sustainable," he said.

Of the lost jobs, 193 belong to ILWU Local 142 members, the last survivors of rounds of layoffs, pay cuts, concessions and closings. Almost all are veterans. Willie Kennison, ILWU Maui Division director, said: "It was coming, but we had hope. We were grasping at straws, hoping for the best."

ML&P Vice President Ryan Churchill said the company had made a last-ditch effort to preserve pine on Maui by negotiating with some former Maui Pine executives and employees who were trying to form a spinoff company. It would have taken over some of the operations and kept growing pineapple.

FULL story at link.

[Jane Austin]

1. Why is the pineapple business down?

Seems like with all the fruit drinks out there from Odwalla and Bolthouse the demand would be higher than ever.

[EmeraldCityGrl]

2. The pineapple business has been outsourced

like everything else. No doubt the land will be sold to a developer.

Oprah Winfrey owns a huge estate on Maui. I hope some day she will donate the
land to the parks department and not allow it to be developed.