Company lays off casual staff

By LARRY ANDREW
A company in Lae has laid off about 30 casual employees as business operations continue to be challenged by Covid-19 and associated impacts.
JKT Lim, the wholesaler and retailer of Mama’s brand products in cooking oil, cordial, sugar, noodles, salt and other products is one of the businesses in the country that is being hit hard as a result.
Operations manager Eng Soon Lim said it has been a difficult time for the company as most of their products were not necessities and they relied heavily on consumers with disposable incomes or slight purchasing flexibility.
Lim said with the lockdown, consumer spending had become highly restricted on necessities and basic needs and, thus, there had been a direct impact on fuel for their operation.
“In order to keep our business alive, we are forced to reduce our operations by reducing shifts,” he said.
“Around 30 plus casual employees have been laid off, while many permanent employees have been reshuffled to run a skeleton staff basis.
“This has greatly affected the income of our employees and their livelihood.
“It was a difficult decision however, necessary to keep the company afloat during these difficult times.
“We have been doing our best to support our employees through various means such as the provision of transport.”