Overview
- Cargill initiated the lockout on May 20, barring more than 1,700 Teamsters from its Fort Morgan, Colorado, plant after the union voted down the company’s final contract offer.
- Union leaders say the company’s five-year proposal offered a 70-cent raise in year one and a 30-cent raise in year five while workers sought a $1 first-year raise and a three-year contract.
- Cargill says its offer represents about $33.4 million over five years, halted slaughtering at the plant on April 23 and has redirected cattle to other facilities to meet producer and customer commitments.
- Workers and the union cite workplace problems including restricted restroom access, extreme heat in some rooms and concerns about line monitoring technology, claims Cargill disputes by pointing to scheduled breaks and restroom procedures.
- The lockout has large local effects in Fort Morgan, which the union says lost nearly 20 percent of its population’s wages, and comes as the wider U.S. beef sector faces tight cattle supplies and recent labor unrest that could deepen supply and community stress.