Meatpacking

What is it?

In the frequently deadly meatpacking industry, powerful food-processing corporations have spent decades forcing employees into fast-paced, low-paying roles with inadequate access to paid leave. Meatpacking workers work in factories rife with animal-borne diseases, dangerous machinery, and abusive practices with minimal oversight. The COVID-19 pandemic particularly compounded these issues, as workers in many plants have been trapped on high-speed production lines, shoulder-to-shoulder with their colleagues. Government regulators at the state and federal levels have a deeply mixed record of enforcement, leaving workers stranded in a life-threatening work environment.