Thread: IA: Union alleges questions about documentation prompts walk

Union alleges questions about documentation prompts walkout at Agriprocessors
May 8, 2007

By JOSH NELSON, Courier Staff Writer
POSTVILLE --- Union officials say about 200 employees on Monday walked out of the Agriprocessors kosher meat plant.

The work stoppage began when company officials asked an unknown number of employees about a letter Agriprocessors received from the Social Security Administration, said Carl Ariston, executive assistant to the regional director of the United Food and Commercial Workers.

The letters said information provided by the workers did not match federal records, he said.

Ariston added company officials denied requests by employees to see the letters, which prompted some to leave their jobs.

"The workers were unsatisfied with their response and approximately 200 people walked out," he said.

Work eventually resumed after Sholom Rubashkin, vice president of Agriprocessors in Postville, --- using an interpreter --- talked employees into coming back, Ariston said.

Rubashkin denied any disruption occurred.

"The people that checked in this morning stayed until the end of the shift," he said.

Rubashkin said mismatched Social Security numbers happen regularly in the course of business. The company will ask employees about the matter, but it's usually not a big deal.

Rubashkin accused Ariston and the union of trying to stir up controversy where none existed.

"I don't know why he's trying to drum it up as an issue," he said.

No official union exists yet at the Agriprocessors facility, but United Food and Commercial Workers have been trying to organize plant workers for about eight months, Ariston said.

He added he believes employees can't be punished for the walkout because the action is protected under federal labor laws. Ariston also said the union is investigating the incident to determine what to do next.

"It depends on if the company disciplines (the employees.) Then we'll file charges," he said.

Where the workers were from or if immigration officials were involved in the incident is not clear. Ariston said union officials may be in Postville today to talk with employees.

The UFCW represents about 250,000 packing house workers at hundreds of companies across the country.

Pending legal issues

Agriprocessors also faces a federal lawsuit filed March 27. In it, 23 former and current employees claim the company has not paid them for preparation time for the last two years. The employees are seeking a class-action lawsuit that could affect up to 1,500 workers.

The employees say Agriprocessors did not pay for the time required to change into safety equipment or to clean and sanitize equipment and knives and to perform many other activities integral to the packing plant's operation. The lawsuit also alleges employees were required to continue working, even after compensation stopped to finish daily production and clean work areas.

"Despite its knowledge that time spent by plaintiffs and class members ... was compensable time under state and federal law, defendant Agriprocessors has refused to fully compensate workers at their Postville, Iowa, facility for any of this time," the lawsuit alleges.

Agriprocessors follows a policy used widely in the meat packing industry known as "gang time" or "line time," and employees are paid only for hours spent on the production line, according to the lawsuit.

The workers getting dressed or preparing for work can take up to 35 minutes each day, the suit says.

Rubashkin said the company is aware of the complaint but found no merit to the claims.

"We are continuing to investigate it," he added.

Similar lawsuits were filed against Tyson Foods in February by employees at plants in Denison and Storm Lake.

The employees listed in the suit are Estuardo Salazar, Walter Ortiz, Gregorio Lux, Gustavo Cujluj, Santos Sis Lopez, Rubelino Hernandez, William Sir, Jeronimo Toj Granados, Marvin Yovany Lopez, Imelda Lozano, Cesar Toj Micolax, Claudio Ruiz, Carlos Ixen Choc, Cesar Morroquin, Berulo Morillo Jimenez, Bernardo Hernandez Lemus, Antiono Chavez Figueroa, Hugo Jovani Lopez, Samuel Lopez Garcia, Luis Lopez, Jose Dany Lopez, Sergio Gergara and Jose Damasio Lopez.

The plaintiffs list Postville as their residence.

http://www.wcfcourier.com/articles/2007 ... 41d5b9.txt

The employees listed in the suit are Estuardo Salazar, Walter Ortiz, Gregorio Lux, Gustavo Cujluj, Santos Sis Lopez, Rubelino Hernandez, William Sir, Jeronimo Toj Granados, Marvin Yovany Lopez, Imelda Lozano, Cesar Toj Micolax, Claudio Ruiz, Carlos Ixen Choc, Cesar Morroquin, Berulo Morillo Jimenez, Bernardo Hernandez Lemus, Antiono Chavez Figueroa, Hugo Jovani Lopez, Samuel Lopez Garcia, Luis Lopez, Jose Dany Lopez, Sergio Gergara and Jose Damasio Lopez.

Geez, is this Agriprocessors kosher meat plant a Mexican company or is it in the United States?

Looks like ICE has some work to do!