1000 redundancies, and counting
Hundreds of Chilean salmon workers, from a variety of companies, have lost their jobs in recent weeks, most of them as a consequence of reduced biomass due to algae blooms.
Two processing plants – belonging to Ventisqueros and Cermaq - have temporarily suspended operations and subsequently dismissed hundreds of workers due to the lack of fish available to process, as a consequence of Harmful Algae Blooms (HABs) affecting the north of the region of Los Lagos in the past two months.
According to Sernapesca, HABs caused losses of almost 40,000 tonnes of biomass last summer. That figure would be equivalent to about 200,000 tonnes of fish which will not be harvested, said the analyst company Salmonex.
Camanchaca and Aquachile have also reported significant layoffs resulting from reduced operation due to HABs.
In late December, Salmonchile forecasted around 2,000 layoffs in the country's salmon industry due to the price and economic crisis faced by the sector last year, although the trade body has not yet disclosed figures relative to potential layoffs as a consequence of HABs. Meanwhile, insider sources predict about 10,000-12,000 job cuts.
