Thus, employees are discouraged from reporting abuses and safety issues because of fear of retaliation. As noted, if they are illegal immigrants, they fear deportation or reporting to INS, and they fear losing their jobs, and so, they do not report safety issues that could be life threatening. Retaliation should not occur, and a worker should not have to fear for their livelihood just to protect themselves and their co-workers. Again, the packers are only interested in their profits, rather than their workers. This is an excellent recommendation and it should not only be enacted, it should also be strictly enforced, and those who do not adhere to it should be fined, punished, or shut down.
Another issue facing many employees is the issue of union membership. Under national and international standards, any employee should be free to join a union without retaliation, but again, this seems to be ignored in the meatpacking industry. Another employee said, "My supervisor said if we sign a union card the company will find out and fire us" (Editors, 2005). Workers are afraid for their jobs if they join a union, and although this is not supposed to happen in modern industry, it is clear it still does. The meatpackers have the advantage, and they know it. They are often the only employer for many families, and the threat of losing their livelihood keeps them from reporting problems, joining a union, and reporting injuries. It is a sad statement that any arm of American business still feels it is legitimate to operate this way. It is equally sad that some many regulatory agencies seem to look the other way and ignore the problems.
Laws should not only cover workers who are legal immigrants. While illegal immigrants may not have rights in some areas, everyone has the right to work in a safe environment, no matter who they are. Laws should cover every worker, and not make exceptions for immigrants or others management happens to single out. The truth is; many immigrants are the only people who will do many of the jobs necessary in a meatpacking plant. Because of this, management preys on them and creates fear in the workplace,...
Human Rights Crisis in the Meatpacking Industry Meatpacking Industry Safety Standards Meatpacking workers have historically been exposed to some of the most dangerous work conditions, resulting in one of the highest injury rates of any occupation in the United States. Between the years 1980 and 1985 the injury rate was three-fold higher for meatpacking plant workers than for all other manufacturing industries (Occupational Safety and Health Administration [OSHA], 1988) and in 2000
The person no longer finds it possible to perform their job or manage their personal life. Withdrawal from others, anger, grief and rage are some of the emotions felt. There are often suicidal or homicidal thoughts and over-reaction to minor events, agitation, frequent accidents, carelessness, forgetfulness and paranoia are the emotions. The victim has muscle tremors, loss of appetite and feels extreme chronic fatigue. At this point, only significant
Safety Incentive Programs Safety should always be a main concern for employers. It is cost-effective to care about your employees. It is good employer-employee relations. It's also great public relations when employers and employees work together for the sake of safety. Give the horse a carrot. We've all heard this expression but have you ever really thought about how true it is? Basically, reward the worker and the work will get done.
The CBA is good for a set period of time, and the union watches the employer to make sure the employer carries out the contract. If a union thinks an employer has violated the CBA, the union can file a complaint, which may be in the end resolved through a process known as arbitration. Union members pay dues that are used to cover the union's costs. Most union's employee
It is interesting to note that most of the workers in the Chicago stockyards in 1906 were immigrants, just as today, and they had their rights trampled in much the same way many of the plants are accused of violating rights even today. Thus, the safety and human rights issues may have improved, but certainly not as much as one would think they would have. I believe many of
Workplace Monitoring As technology advances, employers worldwide are faced with the problem of employee's ill usage of the communication media. In order to reduce these risks, employers are now turning towards technology monitoring, which would enable them to keep a strict watch over their employees. A lot of issues have risen, as a result of workplace monitoring and the debate whether this act of the employers is ethically correct or not
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