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Sirius clams up

'No future comment to media'

Kevin Wilson
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Feb 07/01) - A cone of silence has descended over Sirius Diamonds.

Asked for comment on the recent unionization of Sirius' Yellowknife cutting and polishing facility, company president Stephen Ben-Oliel told Yellowknifer that Sirius would have, "no future comment to the media."

Ben-Oliel accused the media of making Sirius its "flavour of the month" and rather than talking about unionization at the Yellowknife plant, preferred to talk about crime in Vancouver.

"I have customers in Vancouver who are getting robbed every week and sometimes they come in shooting just to get them out of the way," he said from his office in Vancouver. Last week the Union of Northern Workers was certified to represent workers at Sirius' cutting and polishing facility. At the same time, the Canadian Industrial Relations Board found that Sirius had terminated an employee for being a UNW supporter.

Sirius has made headlines since last fall when it became embroiled in a dispute with the GNWT over plans to certify diamonds originating from NWT mines and the company's use of the polar bear logo. A package of diamonds belonging to Sirius went missing en route to Vancouver in December and brought the company more unwelcome attention.

Last month the company laid off workers after it ran out of gems to process.

Sirius Diamonds employs 30 workers at its Yellowknife cutting and polishing facility, 25 of whom would be covered under a union contract.