Posts Categorized: Poultry

On Nov. 5, over 400 members of UFCW Local 540 who work at the Pilgrim’s Pride plant in Waco, Texas, ratified a first union contract that includes the largest pay raises in plant history. The three-year contract also includes the creation of the first-ever union safety committee, stronger overtime protections, and provisions to preserve strong health care and retirement benefits. These hard-working men and women joined UFCW Local 540 in July 2021.  

Key provisions of the new contract include:

•           Pay increases of up to $4.00 per hour as part of their first union contract.

•           Health care coverage preserved as part of commitment to employees and families.

•           Retirement plan security ensured as the company maintains this long-term investment.

•           Overtime pay enhanced to provide higher pay daily instead of requiring employees to meet a 40-hour weekly threshold before overtime kicks in.

•           Union safety committee created in historic first to ensure workers have a voice in the push to strengthen workplace protections as the pandemic continues.

•           Job promotion opportunities expanded with a new open bidding process that enables all employees to apply for vacancies and prioritizes seniority and qualifications.

“With today’s union contract, Texas poultry workers at Waco Pilgrim’s Pride have secured the highest pay raises in plant history and created the first-ever union safety committee — sending a powerful message that workers have a stronger voice on the job when they stand together,” said UFCW Local 540 President Johnny Rodriguez in a statement.

“Helping Texas families put food on the table during the pandemic, these brave frontline workers stepped up for us when we needed them most and have been essential to keeping our communities strong,” Rodriguez said. “Just four months after choosing to unionize, these hard-working men and women are achieving results that will help them support their families, build strong careers, and inspire many more Texans to stand up for the good pay and benefits they have earned.”

“As the union for these Texas frontline workers, UFCW Local 540 was proud to stand with our union’s members at Pilgrim’s Pride here in Waco to secure this strong contract,” Rodriguez added. “Ensuring these jobs continue to be good Texas jobs for working families is the best way to honor essential workers.”

On Sept. 3, the UFCW and Tyson Foods announced the first national U.S. agreement to provide paid sick leave to the company’s meatpacking workers as part of the union’s negotiations with the company over its new vaccine mandate. The UFCW represents 26,000 Tyson Foods workers across the country and is calling for similar paid sick leave policies from all companies across the meatpacking industry to ensure more frontline workers can get the vaccine without fear of losing a paycheck.

Under this new agreement, Tyson Foods workers will be able to earn up to 20 hours of paid sick leave. In addition, the Tyson Foods vaccine mandate will now provide precautions and safeguards for medical, religious, and other protections. Of the company’s 120,000 U.S. workers, more than 75 percent of Tyson Foods workers have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine and over 30,000 Tyson Foods workers have been vaccinated since the company announced its new vaccine mandate in early August.

“As the largest union for Tyson workers across the country, the UFCW’s first priority is to keep these brave men and women safe on the job as the COVID-19 Delta surge continues,” said UFCW International President Marc Perrone in a statement. “Since the vaccines were first approved, the UFCW has played a leading role in helping to vaccinate many of its 1.3 million essential workers in meatpacking plants, grocery stores, and other frontline businesses.” 

“Today, the UFCW is pleased to join Tyson in announcing the first national agreement to provide paid sick leave to American meatpacking workers,” Perrone said. “Paid sick leave is critical to ensuring workers can get vaccinated without losing a paycheck. As part of this deal, the UFCW has ensured that Tyson’s vaccine mandate will be implemented fairly and protect the rights of workers by allowing for medical and religious exemptions where appropriate. Every company in America must follow Tyson’s lead and act now to guarantee paid leave to help even more of our country’s essential workers get vaccinated as soon as possible.” 

“Vaccine mandates, like all COVID workplace safety policies, must be negotiated with workers to build the trust and strong consensus needed for these safeguards to be effective,” Perrone added. “This historic agreement helps to ensure policies like paid leave are not just helping us increase vaccinations during the pandemic, but are also permanent improvements that strengthen these jobs and protect these workers for years to come.”