Alberta Premier Danielle Smith raised eyebrows this week after applauding a local slaughterhouse, currently facing allegations of exploiting temporary foreign workers, as a “positive example” for other businesses.
Critics were quick to note that praising a meat plant under investigation for squeezing employees seemed less like economic vision and more like a scene from Upton Sinclair’s deleted comedy drafts. Smith, however, doubled down, insisting the operation demonstrates “how Alberta attracts hard-working newcomers willing to work long hours without complaint, or at least without access to a union lawyer.”
Advocates for workers called the remarks “grotesque,” pointing out that the only thing being efficiently processed at the facility appears to be human dignity. But government officials insisted Alberta businesses must remain “competitive,” even if that means turning the province’s labor laws into ground beef.
As one critic put it: “At this point, Alberta’s business plan looks less like innovation and more like cannibalism with paperwork.”
