To strengthen its COVID-19 response, Agnico Eagle is placing its Meliadine gold mine in "lockdown mode" starting on Monday.
photo courtesy of Agnico Eagle
That means all workers required at the mine site, 25 km north of Rankin Inlet, will remain there for 28 straight days, except for emergency situations, the company explained in a news release on Sunday. There will be no crew change during this period. The situation will be reassessed on April 27, according to Agnico Eagle.
At the Meadowbank complex, a 110-km drive north of Baker Lake, the number of passenger flights is being reduced to four per month instead of four per week. The work schedule there will also be switching to 28 days on site in followed by 28 days off.
Agnico Eagle also announced that a worker for one of its contractors has been disciplined for "inappropriate messages" posted on several community Facebook pages. Tangmaarvik Inland Camp Services has written apologies on Facebook on behalf of the employee.
"Operating in collaboration with Agnico Eagle Mines, we are aware and well informed of all the preventive measures that were implemented from the start to prevent from COVID-19 on Agnico Eagle sites in Nunavut," the apology reads, in part.
Agnico Eagle stated that the worker in question confirmed his comments were not serious and intended as a joke. Regardless, the employee's messages violated the company's code of ethics and social media policy.
