Posts Categorized: Packing and Processing

Last week, the UFCW responded to a report released by the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis on the failure to protect workers in the meatpacking industry at the height of the pandemic.

The report, released on May 12, reveals that the Trump Administration went out of its way to scale back worker protections at the request of industry lobbyists, and failed in its responsibility to protect workers across the meatpacking industry who experienced some of the most deadly outbreaks.

“Today’s report confirms what we already knew – the Trump Administration’s negligence and unethical actions endangered America’s meatpacking workers and their families at the height of the pandemic,” said UFCW International President Marc Perrone in a statement.

“The UFCW repeatedly sounded the alarm about the Trump Administration’s failed oversight of the industry and its inability to protect the people that kept food on our nation’s tables. This report shows that their failure was not only tragic, but a deliberate attempt to put industry profits ahead of the people just trying to make a living. This report shows that the nation is in desperate need of a comprehensive meat processing safety bill. As the union that represents the largest share of America’s meatpacking workers, with over 250,000 hard-working members in this industry, we are fully committed to ensuring that meatpacking jobs include the health and safety standards these skilled workers deserve and call on all lawmakers to immediately take steps to make that happen.”

Throughout the pandemic, the UFCW has been the leading national voice for essential workers across frontline industries, especially in the meatpacking, grocery, and retail space.

The UFCW repeatedly called on the Trump Administration to take worker safety more seriously during the first year of the pandemic, including efforts to directly appeal to Vice President Mike Pence who was then leading the White House task force.

The UFCW also testified in front of several Congressional committees, including the same one releasing this report, regarding the experience of meatpacking workers during COVID-19; successfully negotiated the first national U.S. agreement to provide paid sick leave to meatpacking workers; and supported the effort to confront safety failures in wrongful death lawsuits against major meatpacking employers. The latest data compiled by the UFCW show that there have been at least 505 frontline worker deaths and at least 131,295 frontline workers infected or exposed to the virus among our union’s members nationwide. That tally includes at least 135 meatpacking worker deaths and 24,395 meatpacking workers infected or exposed to the virus.

You can read the entire report here.

UFCW Locals 663, 1155 and 1189 recently helped to pass premium pay legislation for essential workers in Minnesota.

Last week, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz signed premium pay legislation into law, which allocates $500 million in funding for premium pay for essential workers. All frontline workers—including grocery, meatpacking, food processing, and long-term care workers—are eligible to apply for premium pay funds online in four weeks and members will have 45 days to apply for the funds. Workers will receive $750 one-time premium pay payments. This legislation will direct around $18 million in funds to the 24,000 UFCW members in Minnesota.

UFCW Locals 663, 1155, and 1189, in partnership with the Legislative and Political Action Department, worked hard to pass this legislation. Their multi-pronged campaign included 5,643 emails from members to elected officials; member video testimonials; letters from the locals to elected officials; meetings with Governor Walz; testimonies at committee meetings; speaking at press conferences with coalition partners; and educating members through social media and face-to-face conversations.

“Politicians asked grocery store workers to step up and serve our state by making us Tier 1 essential workers,” said UFCW Local 1189 member Lester Tear in testimony before the Minnesota State Legislature in July. “We did our duty. We have all done our best to step up and it has been an honor. I was more prepared to do this, since I served overseas, so I have been trained to risk my healthy and safety for the country. When we serve in the military, we get combat pay for working in dangerous conditions. It only seems fair to give pandemic pay to grocery workers for working in dangerous conditions.”

Locals that are interested in working on premium pay through legislation at the state or local level should reach out to International Vice President and Director of the Legislative and Political Action Department Ademola Oyefeso at aoyefeso@ufcw.org.