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CASE FARMS POULTRY WORKERS FORCED TO WITHHOLD THEIR LABOR

Poultry Plant Picket Lines Reflect Commitment to Fight for Living Wages
(Winesburg , Ohio ) - More than one hundred frustrated poultry workers
walked off the job at Case Farms poultry plant in a fight for living wages
and respect on the job. Over a year ago these same workers chose United
Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 880 to be their voice on the
job and to bargain a fair and living wage for them. After months of hard
bargaining and despite the best efforts of a Federal Mediator, Case Farms
refused to budge from its tiny economic offer that would pay them less
than their non-union counterparts in North Carolina who do the same work.

Faced with this unreasonable and unfair position, the workers voted
overwhelmingly (294-12) to reject the offer and to withhold their labor.
Despite this clear message, the company continued to stonewall in
negotiations. A privately owned company, Case Farms has decided to make
non-union status and profits for owner more important than paying a fair
and living wage to its Winesburg workers. After the company committed
numerous alleged unfair labor practices, the workers decided that they
were left with no choice, that the company had no interest in treating
them fairly, and that the only thing they could do was withhold their labor
until the company decided to be fair to them. Chicken is the number one
meat product in the U.S. yet Case Farms is paying its dedicated workforce
a paltry $8.10 per hour, on average, which translates into an annual
income of $16,000 -- 20% below the federal poverty level for a family of
four.

Poultry processing is one of the most dangerous jobs in the country.
The dangerous conditions faced by workers in the poultry industry have
been documented by academics, the media and the U.S. Government
Accountability Office. Poultry workers typically perform physically
demanding, repetitive work, during which they stand for long periods of
time at fast moving production lines while using ultra-sharp knives and
scissors. Working in extreme temperatures they often make up to 40,000
repetitive cutting motions per shift. In addition to the plant in Winesburg ,
OH , Case Farms operates poultry plants in Morganton and Goldsboro North
Carolina . Case has a history of forcing workers to withhold their labor in
order to achieve fair treatment by management. The UFCW International
Union represents more than 1.3 million members in the U.S. and Canada
including 250,000 workers in the poultry and meatpacking industries. UFCW
Local 880 represents more than 22,000 workers across Northern Ohio
including supermarket workers and food processing workers.