On May 20, more than 1,700 workers at Cargill Meat Solutions in Fort Morgan, CO, were locked out following unresolved negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement.
“But long before Cargill placed barriers at the gate of the facility, it had already ceased meaningful operations: The company has not brought cattle into the facility for processing for nearly a month,” representing union Teamsters Local 455 said in a Facebook post.
Union members have sought a new collective bargaining agreement after the latest agreement expired Feb. 22. Teamsters contends that Cargill has “refused to offer Teamsters Local 455 members necessary improvements to wages, health care, and safety protections.”
Cargill said it offered two package proposals for a union vote and has been in contact with a mediator. The company said it made the “difficult decision” to initiate a lockout because “we cannot operate the facility safely and responsibly amid continued uncertainty of a potential work stoppage.”
Cargill also said it made the decision not to run production ahead of the lockout to “help prevent food waste, protect animal welfare and safeguard food safety.”
The company said it remains committed to reaching an agreement through continued good-faith negotiations with Teamsters. The company offered the following proposal to the union:
• Year one wages would range from $24.20-32.10 per hour based on role requirements and skill level.
• Cargill will invest an estimated $33.4 million in Fort Morgan employees over the next five years.
“Cargill believes the proposal is fair and competitive and reflects our long-term commitment to Fort Morgan employees,” the company said. “Like other beef operations, Fort Morgan is operating in a challenging economic environment, with costs currently exceeding returns.”
The company and union scheduled additional bargaining for May 27. “As we have told the union, we remain open to reviewing any counterproposals they bring forward and would welcome a joint meeting with a mediator,” Cargill said.
As of May 28, at WLJ press time, no agreement had been reached and the lockout continued into its second week.
A Cargill spokesperson told WLJ in an emailed statement that the company met with the union and reviewed its counterproposal, but the meeting did not result in an agreement.
“We remain open to discussing with the union how the contract package might be structured in different ways to address employee priorities and support a stable future for the Fort Morgan facility,” the company said. “We continue to welcome proposals that help move us toward a sustainable agreement and would support a joint meeting with a mediator.”
The union said in a May 25 Facebook post that “we are not backing down until we get a fair agreement that respects the workers who keep this operation running every single day.” — Anna Miller Fortozo, WLJ managing editor
