Severance Pay Delayed to Laid-Off Diamond Workers
November 14, 25
(IDEX Online) - More than 300 workers who were laid off from the Ekati diamond mine, in Canada, in July, have had their scheduled severance payments delayed as owners Burgundy battle cashflow problems.
Last month the Calgary-based miner updated former workers about their severance saying: "Due to financial constraints and cash flow considerations, the company will need to adjust the payment schedule."
They were told the money would be paid in instalments, rather than in one lump sum, but they didn't receive a payment that should have arrived on 6 November.
The company has since emailed them saying partial severance payment was due to be paid this week.
Burgundy, which acquired the mine in March 2023, has been hard hit by the global slump in demand for natural diamonds, compounded by 50 per cent tariffs imposed by the US on polished goods imported from India.
Burgundy halted part of its operations, the open-pit at the Point Lake site, in July and laid off over 300 of its 1,250-strong employee and contractor workforce.
It is pinning its hopes of long-term survival on a Large Enterprise Tariff Loan of up to CAD 150m (USD 110m) from Canada's federal government.
Pic shows Ekati mine.