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3,800 Workers Strike at Colorado Beef Plant
The strike involves 3,800 United Food and Commercial Workers Local 7 members protesting wages, health insurance costs, and alleged unfair labor practices at JBS's Swift Beef plant.
- About 3,800 workers at the Swift Beef Company plant in Greeley began striking Monday morning, seeking higher wages and safer working conditions, said United Food and Commercial Workers Local 7 President Kim Cordova.
- Contract negotiations stalled after union leaders claimed JBS USA refused to negotiate Saturday, citing intimidation and unsafe practices, while the company maintains its proposal is fair and consistent with national agreements.
- This walkout marks the first United States slaughterhouse strike since 1985, as workers protest production lines sped up to 420 animals per hour, according to Cordova, who noted 99% of employees authorized the action.
- To mitigate supply disruptions, JBS USA announced plans to operate two shifts at the Greeley facility, promising to pay any non-striking employees while temporarily moving production to other company facilities.
- The industry faces its first major labor dispute in decades, occurring amid a 75-year low in the U.S. cattle population of 86.2 million, which may exacerbate economic anxiety over beef prices.
155 Articles
155 Articles
Workers walk in first meatpacking strike in 40 years
REELEY, Colo.—For the first time in 40 years, meatpacking workers are walking off the job after voting 99% to authorize strike action against JBS Foods. By Monday, nearly 4,000 members of United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 7were out on strike.
The Real News
JacobinThousands of Colorado meatpacking workers are on strike
This story originally appeared in Jacobin on Mar. 16, 2026. It is shared here with permission. When Deborah Rodarte arrives for her shift at the Swift Beef Co. plant outside Greeley, Colorado, owned by JBS USA, the first thing she does is gear up. Donning a hard hat and protective equipment, including a layer of metal mesh meant to keep knives from cutting through to the skin, she heads to the line and waits for the cattle to start coming down t…
Thousands of meat-packing workers left work on Monday at a JBS-owned plant in Colorado, on the industry's first strike in 40 years.
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