{"id":3067,"date":"2025-04-18T12:00:19","date_gmt":"2025-04-18T17:00:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ufcw663.org\/blog\/?p=3067"},"modified":"2025-08-26T14:09:19","modified_gmt":"2025-08-26T19:09:19","slug":"jbs-health-safety","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ufcw663.org\/blog\/2025\/04\/18\/jbs-health-safety\/","title":{"rendered":"JBS Meatpacking Workers Call for Improved Health & Safety at Worthington Plant"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

For Immediate Release<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

April 18, 2025<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Worthington, MN<\/strong>\u2013United Food & Commercial Workers Local 663 meatpacking workers called on JBS Foods in Worthington<\/strong> to improve health and safety at their Worthington plant. Meatpacking is one of the most dangerous jobs in the country, and injuries at the Worthington plant are some of the worst in the industry. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

UFCW 663 President Rena Wong spoke at the march, \u201cWe have brought up issues of line speed and safety to JBS and they\u2019ve rejected our proposals over and over again. It\u2019s gotten to a point where workers decided to organize this march to send a message that they need to listen to us, that we need our bodies protected and we need a safe workplace,\u201d Wong said. \u201cSafe line speeds means safe meat products for consumers.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

JBS is one of the largest producers of beef, pork, and (under the Pilgrim\u2019s Pride brand) chicken in the country. It\u2019s also one of the most dangerous, recording the 8th-highest level of severe injuries in the country across all industries, not just meatpacking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Diana Rodriguez works with the Whizard knife, \u201cLast year when I was working I felt a tendon or ligament in my hand snap. I talked to my supervisor and he told me it was nothing bad and to go back to work. I went to the infirmary during my own break and my hand was inflamed. They treated me with ice, heat, and pills. I changed my job for a few days to rest my hand. I had to go back to therapy a few months later because it was still hurting. Now my hand is more or less fine, but it’s not the same. My supervisor made me feel that my injury was my fault. It’s not our fault, it’s the company’s fault. On my line the hams are stacked tightly and there is no room or time to rest.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

While the total number of injuries declined during the pandemic as line speeds slowed, dropping from 114 in 2020 to 88 in 2022, by 2024, the number of injuries had climbed back to 100. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

UFCW 663 is looking for changes to address these issues at the bargaining table. We proposed that line speeds be posted on each production line, additional training, and workers should have the authority to enforce the line’s speed. We also want to ensure every worker understands how line speed, injuries, and food safety are interconnected. We place a high value on the safety of workers and consumers. Family-sustaining wages and benefits help JBS attract and retain staffing levels necessary to ensure safety.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lorena Zavala works in the Cut department at JBS, \u201cI am a single mother and I have to support my two children. When I look at my budget, I see that with the salary I make and the expenses I have, I can’t make ends meet. So I had to find a second job. I lose time with my children. This company is the largest meat processing company in the world – because of its workers – so it has the money to pay us what we deserve. Our jobs at JBS should be family-sustaining jobs. At the end of the day, I want to make enough money so that at the end of the day I’m spending time with my kids.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

UFCW 663 meatpacking workers in Worthington have been bargaining a contract since January 2025 <\/strong>and have yet to come to an agreement that invests in the safety of workers and addresses health and safety issues in the plant. The current contract expires on June 1, 2025. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

###<\/p>\n\n\n\n

UFCW Local 663<\/em><\/a> represents more than 17,000 hard-working retail, meat packing and processing, food preparation and manufacturing, healthcare, and other workers in Minnesota and Iowa. We strive to improve the lives of our members and of all working families by fighting for economic, political, and social justice in our workplaces and communities. UFCW Local 663 is part of the 1.3 million-member United Food and Commercial Workers International Union.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

For Immediate Release April 18, 2025 Worthington, MN\u2013United Food & Commercial Workers Local 663 meatpacking workers called on JBS Foods in Worthington to improve health and safety at their Worthington plant. Meatpacking is one of the most dangerous jobs in the country, and injuries at the Worthington plant are some of the worst in the … Continue reading JBS Meatpacking Workers Call for Improved Health & Safety at Worthington Plant<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":3069,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[62,60,59],"tags":[370,298,266,26,242],"yoast_head":"\nJBS Meatpacking Workers Call for Improved Health & Safety at Worthington Plant - UFCW 663<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.ufcw663.org\/blog\/2025\/04\/18\/jbs-health-safety\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"JBS Meatpacking Workers Call for Improved Health & Safety at Worthington Plant - UFCW 663\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"For Immediate Release April 18, 2025 Worthington, MN\u2013United Food & Commercial Workers Local 663 meatpacking workers called on JBS Foods in Worthington to improve health and safety at their Worthington plant. 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