CEO David Yochlowitz of ABC Recycling is pictured at their yard in Burnaby, British Columbia on July 2, 2017.BEN NELMS/The Globe and Mail
Western Canada’s largest processor of scrap metal, ABC Recycling, has been around for 112 years. You don’t often get past the century mark without having set yourself apart, so it’s no surprise that this family-owned and operated business—now in its fourth generation—has long aimed beyond the traditional operations of a metal recycling company. “As a Jewish family that immigrated to Canada in the early 1900′s, we’ve always been community-minded, and we seek to fight injustice when we see it,” says CEO David Yochlowitz. “That value is rooted in our family’s tradition of tzedakah, or charity.”
A focus on community can be a meaningless buzzword in the wrong hands. But in ABC Recycling’s case, an explicit social purpose, and the action to back it up, makes it anything but. “We exist to preserve the world’s resources, building thriving communities by accelerating metal recycling”—thus reads the company’s dedicated social mission statement. Central to fulfilling this mandate is its work with Indigenous communities.
For one thing, ABC has an explicit Indigenous People Commitment Policy, which details its focus on the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Call to Action #92. That section calls on corporations to build respectful and progressive relationships through meaningful consultation, internal education, ensuring that Indigenous people have equitable access to jobs and training—and making sure Indigenous communities actually benefit from economic development projects.
“We prioritize partnerships with Indigenous communities that are founded on mutual understanding and benefit, rather than mere business transactions,” says Yochlowitz. To walk the walk, ABC enhances its revenue-sharing agreements with Indigenous communities by hiring local employees on job sites, collaborating to clean up remote locations, and offering volunteer work. (ABC employees receive two paid days of volunteer work per year, with at least one day dedicated to sustainability or supporting reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples). Plus, they make a habit of hiring Indigenous people for permanent positions.
Recently, ABC Recycling collaborated with the Haisla Nation, Kispiox Band, and Lax-Kw’alaams Band to remove derelict vehicles from remote locations. And in 2023, ABC Recycling began partnering with the Williams Lake First Nation on the Gibraltar Mine, Canada’s second-largest open-pit copper mine. This involves the monthly removal of approximately 500 net tons of recyclable steel and non-ferrous materials, benefiting both the environment and the local economy.
Further on the environmental cleanup side, ABC routinely volunteers equipment and hours with the grassroots nonprofit Okanagan Task Force to clean up illegal dumping sites. Over the past five years, they’ve helped remove 500,000 pounds of garbage and 350,000 pounds of metal from British Columbia forests.
Internal education is a cornerstone of these efforts, as recommended by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Every ABC employee undergoes a full day of training that covers the historical oppression of Indigenous peoples in Canada, the challenges they face today, and what a path to true reconciliation might look like. We may have a very long way to go as a nation, but companies that focus more on action than lipservice are a step in the right direction.
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