ViPlus Toora: More than 30 jobs axed at China-focused Gippsland dairy factory
Coronavirus travel restrictions have shaken up Australia’s once-golden infant formula market and a Gippsland factory has been hit hard by the trend.
MORE than 30 jobs are set to be axed at a Gippsland dairy factory with strong links to the Chinese market.
ViPlus Dairy, which employs more than 120 workers at its Toora processing site, made the announcement this week.
The processor specialises in manufacturing infant formula — a once-lucrative cash stream that has been interrupted by coronavirus pandemic restrictions on travel.
ViPlus Dairy chief executive Jon McNaught confirmed 31 staff out of a total workforce of 124 would receive a redundancy package over the coming weeks.
He said the impacted workers would receive all entitlements owed in addition to a redundancy payment.
“Making this very hard decision is not taken lightly and we have done all we can and pursued all alternative options before undertaking redundancies,” he said.
“Our skilled workforce is central to our success, and we are loosing some excellent people as a result of this action.”
South Gippsland Shire administrator Julie Eisenbise said the council would work with Mr McNaught and Regional Development Victoria to support the 31 workers to find new opportunities.
“The council is also talking to support agencies that may be able to assist these workers and exploring the opportunities that could be available at council through the recently announced Working for Victoria program,” she said.
“To date, ViPlus has been a great addition to our region and has had a positive impact on jobs in and around Toora.
“This announcement takes us all by surprise and highlights the affect that COVID-19 has had on so many businesses throughout our region and indeed the rest of our nation.
“We hope that ViPlus can recover from this setback and, in time, find a way for these jobs to return.”
The move is a marked change since the early months of pandemic restrictions when ViPlus hired more workers at the site to cope with increased demand.
In an interview in July 2020 with The Australian, Mr McNaught said demand was continuing to grow at the time in China despite political tensions.
At the time, China’s ambassador to Australia warned of an agricultural boycott by Beijing after Prime Minister Scott Morrison spearheaded a push for an investigation into the origins of the coronavirus.
“There is going to be risks there and political bargy but we’re not seeing any impact on our products,” Mr McNaught said in July.
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