Meatpackers ratify new contract with protections against industry deregulation
Meatpacking workers with the UFCW Local 663 have ratified a new contract with JBS Foods in Worthington.
Union members are touting contract wins that include improvements in safety, attendance policy, retirement security, and wage increases.
Line speed safety protections are also part of the contract, something workers had fought to include. Stewards and other representatives will get joint union-employer training to time and monitor production line work.
"These measures empower workers to ensure that line speeds remain within safe limits," the UFCW said in an announcement.
"Having all union stewards receive line speed training is very important,' said Brenda Quijano, bargaining committee member and worker in the day kill department in Worthington. "When we can regulate the line speed, it means fewer injuries for us —especially given the four years ahead with Trump weakening our line speed protections. We've improved our own ability to protect ourselves."
Union members held a rally in April where workers protested in shifts outside the plant in an attempt to highlight health and safety concerns, as well as the U.S. Department of Agriculture's move to permanently deregulate line speed for pork and poultry production, something that could put the safety of workers at risk.
'At JBS, UFCW Local 663 members have won stronger protections and better working conditions. We know that when jobs are safe and respectful, they become good jobs—jobs that support families and strengthen our communities," UFCW Local 663 President Rena Wong said in a statement.
Additionally, the new contract includes a $1.20 per hour wage increase over the three-year term of the contract, as well as the choice to maintain workers' current 401K or enroll in a Variable Annuity Pension Plan.
"Our historic agreement with the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union provides the first nationwide pension plan for our industry in nearly 50 years," Nikki Richardson of JBS' Corporate Communications tells Bring Me the News.
"We are confident that the significant wage increases over the life of the contracts and the opportunity of a secure retirement through our pension plan will create a better future for the men and women who work with us at JBS."
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