Today, the Food Chain Workers Alliance released a new report, The Hands That Feed Us: Challenges and Opportunities for Workers Along the Food Chain. The report details “the state of the food chain worker,” captures the experiences of workers, and … Continued
Photo: Flickr user Gage Skidmore Every Friday we want to offer a collection of media pieces that we’re finding provocative, vital, persuasive, prophetic, genius, infuriating, mind-blogging, and other adjectives that gesture at all things thought-provoking. Some of these posts will, … Continued
It happened again several weeks ago. He asked permission to go to the bathroom. His supervisor told him to wait till a replacement was found for his position on the line. The supervisor didn’t come back. He could wait no … Continued
It has been about 30 years since the turkey plants began to open in the Iowa and other parts of the rural Midwest. The location was ideal for corporations. After breaking up the labor unions in places like Chicago and … Continued
Temporary work agencies have been popping up all over the country. I did a Google search for agencies in Iowa alone and came back with 53,000 results. As I talk to workers, many of them say they are finding work, … Continued
Originally published by The Progressive Media Project on November 22, 2010. Before you carve into your Thanksgiving turkey, please pause to reflect on the workers who brought the holiday feast to your table. After twenty-one years of grueling, hard labor … Continued
According to a report released in October by Nebraska Appleseed called “The Speed Kills You”, meatpacking remains “one of the most dangerous jobs in America”. Citing its survey in which packinghouse workers reported higher injury rates than official statistics, the … Continued
If Postville, Iowa is the poster story of meatpacking companies and immigration enforcement run amok, Atalissa, Iowa is the latest snapshot of horrific exploitation of vulnerable workers in the nation’s poultry industry. In recent days the Des Moines Register and … Continued
There is no one in this country who eats unless immigrant workers provide the food. From the ground to the grocer, low-wage immigrants, refugees, and other workers of color are the very backbone of the nation’s food system. There is … Continued