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Thread: Here's one unionized American industry that I though was safe from outsourcing ...

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    Default Here's one unionized American industry that I though was safe from outsourcing ...

    ... well at least Del Monty will have to stop printing 'Hawaiian Pineapple' on the can labels ....

    "Del Monte to End Hawaii Pineapple Production
    Thursday, February 02, 2006


    HONOLULU — After 90 years in the islands, Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc. (FDP) says it will cease pineapple operations in Hawaii in a little more than two years.

    Del Monte said it was no longer economically feasible to grow pineapple in Hawaii because it can be produced for less in other parts of the world.

    "It would be cheaper for Del Monte to buy pineapples on the open market than for the company to grow, market and distribute Hawaiian pineapple," the company said in a statement Wednesday.

    Del Monte also cited difficulty in obtaining a long-term lease extension with landowner Campbell Estate.

    But Campbell Estate Vice President Bert Hatton said Del Monte declined a lease extension at the then-current rent structure in 2001. The estate also offered to sell the pineapple land in three separate proposals, but Del Monte rejected those, Hatton said.

    Planting at Del Monte's Kunia plantation on Oahu was set to end Feb. 19 and the current crop will produce fruit through mid-2008, the company said.

    Fred Galdones, president of International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 142, said about the 700 pineapple workers who will lose their jobs. Galdones said he was also concerned with the future of the two remaining pineapple companies in Hawaii, Dole Food Hawaii and Maui Pineapple Co.

    "I hope it's not a domino effect like it did with the sugar companies, where one had closed and the others followed suit," he said.

    Hawaii's once thriving sugar cane industry is barely a presence now as companies found it cheaper to operate elsewhere.

    Tens of thousands of acres of former sugar cane fields on the densely populated island of Oahu, where about 75 percent of the state's 1.3 million population reside, have since been developed into master-planned residential communities and shopping centers.

    The islands' red, volcanic soil and year-round sunny weather are ideal to grow pineapple, the top agricultural commodity in Hawaii.

    Last year, Hawaii produced 212,000 tons of pineapples worth an estimated $79 million, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Worldwide, the top pineapple producers are Thailand, the Philippines, Brazil, China, India and Costa Rica, according to a USDA report.

    "I think that American workers everywhere, literally from Hawaii to Maine to Texas to Michigan, are vulnerable to outsourcing and that's really what this is about," said Hanan Kolko, a New York labor lawyer.

    Del Monte said it will work with its employees and union representatives to "reduce the impact of this decision."

    "Del Monte is mindful of the company's obligations to its employees and the local community, and is committed to making every reasonable effort to lessen the impact on all individuals involved," the company said in a statement. A company spokeswoman declined further comment.

    Coral Gables, Fla.-based Del Monte began pineapple operations in Hawaii in 1916, when the company was called California Packing Corp. Its main competitor is Dole Food Co., which produces pineapples on 3,000 acres it owns in Wahiawa.

    "It is our plan to continue growing pineapples on Oahu for the foreseeable future," Dole spokeswoman Marta Maitles said Thursday. She declined to comment on how Del Monte's decision may affect Dole, which will be left as the only major pineapple grower on Oahu. Dole employs 250 unionized workers."

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    Default Re: Here's one unionized American industry that I though was safe from outsourcing ...

    I recommend septic tank repair company investments, or in those areas where perc. tests
    for sewage absorbtion are not practical due to soil conditions, holding tank hauling wagons.
    This will be the type of american industry of the future where, if you are in it, you can clean up and not be outsourced. In large cities sewage would be municipal employment. In rural american it is private industry.

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    Default Re: Here's one unionized American industry that I though was safe from outsourcing ...

    I heard a story of an IT worker who started a "pick up dog doo doo" business. Of course, IT people are always cleaning up the shit others make of their machines anyhow.

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    Default Re: Here's one unionized American industry that I though was safe from outsourcing ...

    Sounds like a correct analogy. Just wish the plan for the effect on american workers
    for transition was known to me. I suspect there is no plan. That is where wall street will
    pay for the price that they should know better. Massive economic/social disruption
    in the developed western world with no thought to a transition plan. A real massive
    lack of attention to details and planning is becoming quite apparent in many areas of
    our country.

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    Default Re: Here's one unionized American industry that I though was safe from outsourcing ...

    Hardly surprising since the pineapple is not indigenous to Hawaii. It is a native South American plant. They can also grow in Florida. My mom planted the tops of her pineapples for 20 years when she lived in Fla. Made a nice looking plant for a bromeliad.

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    Default Re: Here's one unionized American industry that I though was safe from outsourcing ..

    Quote Originally Posted by Niceguy
    Sounds like a correct analogy. Just wish the plan for the effect on american workers
    for transition was known to me. I suspect there is no plan. That is where wall street will
    pay for the price that they should know better. Massive economic/social disruption
    in the developed western world with no thought to a transition plan. A real massive
    lack of attention to details and planning is becoming quite apparent in many areas of
    our country.
    Oh no no... they got a plan. It's called "retraining" and "education."

    See, your math and science degree? The one that they are always bitching about the lack of workers with such - that is meaningless. You need to retrain into ... um ... ah ... eh ... hmmmm.


    Doggie Doo Doo Picker Upper

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    Default Re: Here's one unionized American industry that I though was safe from outsourcing ...

    Quote Originally Posted by Niceguy
    Sounds like a correct analogy. Just wish the plan for the effect on american workers
    for transition was known to me. I suspect there is no plan. That is where wall street will
    pay for the price that they should know better. Massive economic/social disruption
    in the developed western world with no thought to a transition plan. A real massive
    lack of attention to details and planning is becoming quite apparent in many areas of
    our country.

    They dont care about a plan. Because you know there are is a group of people out there that are gonna make a fortune off our downfall. hhhmm could it be the same ones that bringing all this about?

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