Posts Categorized: Food Processing

Members of UFCW Local 342 who work at Ba-Tampte Pickle Products, Inc. in Brooklyn, N.Y., unanimously ratified a new contract on July 29. The 19 workers produce refrigerated pickles and other condiments for the company.

The five-year contract includes significant wage increases, an additional bonus, as well as 401(k) retirement benefit contribution increases.  The contract also includes scheduling improvements in addition to protections in the event of a global, national and/or state emergency or pandemic that would affect the working conditions of UFCW Local 342 members.  Wage increases will be retroactive to May 1, 2021, and the contract will expire on October 31, 2026.

“We had to do this as a group, and everyone had to agree to get a good contract,” said Ba-Tampte Pickle Products, Inc. worker Darren Brown, who has been a union member for 20 years.

“Local 342 is proud of our members at Ba-Tampte Pickle,” said UFCW Local 342 President Deana Abondolo. “Congratulations to all involved. In unity there is strength!”

On August  3, the UFCW, in partnership with the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC), released the results of a year-long study on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on UFCW essential members.

This study is the largest longitudinal survey of essential workers and union members during the COVID-19 pandemic. Nearly 20,000 UFCW essential workers across all 50 states in nearly every industry represented by our union participated in the survey.

Among the key findings of the year-long study of essential workers were:

• UFCW members who reported having COVID infections before May 2021 were twice as likely to be reinfected in the past year.
• Of those UFCW members who contracted COVID, 59 percent said that they believed it was likely they contracted the virus in their workplace.
• Six percent of respondents that contracted COVID needed to be hospitalized, which is a significantly higher rate than the nationwide 2 percent rate of hospitalization.
• Four percent of workers reported being unable to return to work after contracting COVID.
• In May of 2022, half of respondents reported that their lives were still deeply impacted by COVID.

“This UNMC study makes clear that COVID-19 has – and continues to have – a serious and significant impact on America’s essential workers,” said UFCW International President Marc Perrone. “The UFCW is calling on Congress, the Biden Administration, and states and localities to take bolder steps and policy actions to better address the impact of the pandemic, and to help protect workers from future pandemics. These essential workers paid a hefty price for continuing to do their jobs, which kept food on American families’ tables and our economy moving throughout the pandemic. They deserve immediate action as they continue to confront ongoing risk and the nation’s recognition for their service.”

“The unique partnership with UFCW has recorded the full scope of the markedly increased risk of COVID infections among union essential workers,” said Ali S. Khan MD, dean of the College of Public Health, UNMC. “Policies to protect these essential workers are critical to weathering the current surge of COVID cases nationwide and being ready for the next pandemic.”

In light of this groundbreaking study, the UFCW is calling for the following immediate actions to protect the health and safety of our essential workers:

• Ensure essential workers in every industry have access to dedicated paid sick leave that protects their employment status when dealing with infection;
• Immediately move on legislation, like the America’s Meatpacking Workers Act, to protect some of the most vulnerable workers in the hardest-hit industries;
• Implement a nationwide Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) infectious disease standard, and hold employers accountable who do not take steps to protect essential workers during pandemics.

More information on the survey can be found on the ufcw.org website here and a social media toolkit for Locals to promote the survey and key findings can be found here.