CAMDEN, N.J. (KYW Newsradio) — Dozens of employees at the embattled EMR scrapyard in Camden protested outside City Hall today to keep their jobs.
After yet another big fire at the scrapyard on May 29, city, county and state officials called for the facility to be shut down.
According to officials, there have been at least a dozen such incidents there over a five-year period. The New Jersey Attorney General’s Office filed a lawsuit against EMR earlier this year, accusing the company of failing to make the necessary changes to prevent further fires.
Employees there said the fires weren’t their fault and that products with hidden lithium batteries were to blame.
One employee, Kareem Anderson, said workers at the scrapyard were also mostly city residents who needed their jobs.
“[The] majority of us here today are second-chance convicted felons and EMR gave us a chance to join society with a career. They gave us a chance to make an earnest living for our family and ourselves,” he said.
They chanted about having Mayor Vic Carstarphen come out and talk to them, but the mayor wasn’t there.
“We want to speak to the mayor. We want to speak to [Rep. Donald] Norcross,” Anderson said. “We want to speak to all the top officials. Everybody that feels like they want to shut EMR down, we have a problem with that. We want to fight for our job.”
A city spokesman said the fire is still under investigation and the future of the site hasn't been finalized.
