Colorado Meatpacking Strike Enters Third Week as Workers Demand Better Pay

Thousands of workers at a major Colorado beef plant are continuing their strike into a third week, seeking higher wages and improved healthcare benefits. The walkout at the Swift Beef Co. facility in Greeley represents the first slaughterhouse strike in the U.S. since 1985.

GREELEY, Colorado — A labor dispute at a major beef processing facility in Colorado shows no signs of ending as thousands of employees prepare to enter their third week on the picket line, demanding improved wages and healthcare benefits.

The walkout at Swift Beef Co.’s Greeley facility, which started March 16, marks the first time slaughterhouse workers have gone on strike in the United States since a 1985 work stoppage at a Hormel facility in Minnesota that lasted over a year and involved violent clashes.

Industry analysts say it remains unclear whether the ongoing labor action will affect meat prices at grocery stores nationwide.

JBS USA, which owns the facility, announced Friday that operations continue at reduced levels while the company has redirected beef processing to other locations to fulfill customer orders.

The strike received overwhelming support from union members, with 99% of the plant’s 3,800 United Food and Commercial Union Local 7 workers backing the walkout. Large crowds have gathered at picket lines throughout the past two weeks.

Labor representatives argue that management’s proposed 2% salary increase falls short of current inflation rates.

“The Union stands ready to meet with JBS at any time, but make no mistake, workers will continue to fight until JBS rights these wrong,” union President Kim Cordova said.

According to Jennifer Martin from Colorado State University’s animal sciences department, the stalled negotiations may actually favor the company over striking employees. She explained that reduced processing capacity across the industry, including this strike and the shutdown of a major Tyson Foods Nebraska plant, has helped boost profit margins for remaining operations.

“It’s not necessarily in favor of the employees,” she added. “The lack of harvest capacity at one facility right now might actually be a benefit to the larger industry in the sense of improving (profit) margins.”

JBS operates as the world’s largest meat processing corporation, valued at $17 billion in market capitalization. The company serves as Greeley’s primary employer in the city of approximately 114,000 residents, located 50 miles northeast of Denver.

“We are maintaining supply, supporting the long-term stability of the beef chain, and minimizing disruption for producers, customers, and consumers,” JBS spokesperson Nikki Richardson said in an email. “Our priority is to keep product moving while we work toward a resolution in Greeley.”

The Brazilian-owned company gained approval for New York Stock Exchange trading last May, despite facing environmental criticism and federal investigation that resulted in guilty pleas for bribing Brazilian government officials to secure financing for U.S. expansion efforts.