Правительство Австралии готово выделить миллионы долларов на спасение заводов SunRice после массовых увольнений

One Nation MP David Farley has said the federal government will be part of a potential multimillion-dollar package to back SunRice mills following major job cuts. The Australian company previously announced it would trim 92 jobs across its Deniliquin, Leeton and Australian Grain Storage (AGS) operations, alongside 78 staff redundancies, and only 14 redeployments. However, One Nation MP David Farley said during a Sunday episode of ABC Insiders that Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has already instigated the conversation regarding the SunRice situation. During the interview, Farley said he was “impressed” by the Prime Minister pledging support from the government at a recent Governor-General event. “[Albanese] came straight up to me and said, ‘Look, I’m aware of it. I’m working on it. We’ll get it done,” Farley said. “I tilt my hat to him,” Farley added. While details are yet to be full confirmed, Farley compared the situation to Tomago Aluminium, Australia’s largest aluminium smelter, which received a 10-year funding deal of$2.5 billion to keep the factory open. “What were we asking for, first of all for is water, there’s plenty of water at the moment because the rivers have been flooding,” he said. “We were asking for $15 million to match the industry’s $15 million to invest in the plant and we would be able to avoid those redundancies to 78 families,” Farley continued. Acting Edward River Council, mayor Kellie Crossley said while it’s “encouraging” a small number of SunRice employees have secured redeployment, overall “this remains a significant loss for our community and a difficult outcome for many local families”. “The rice industry has been part of the fabric of Deniliquin for generations, and these job losses will be felt far beyond the mill. “The impacts will flow through local businesses, contractors, service providers, schools, sporting clubs and community organisations, affecting the broader social and economic wellbeing of our region,” Crossley added. Crossley said the cuts are a “direct consequence of federal government water reform policies” including water buybacks “which have reduced the volume of productive water available to irrigators.” Crossley said the council will support any initiative that helps affected workers and their families remain in our community and transition into new employment opportunities. Stay in the know Never miss a story: sign up to SmartCompany’s free daily newsletter and find our best stories on LinkedIn.