Meatpacking workers face some of the most hazardous work conditions in the country. Illness and injury rates in meatpacking are double that of all U.S. manufacturing (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics 2005), and according to a 2005 Government Accountability Study, underreporting of injuries is a serious problem in available data. A 2005 Human Rights Watch Report also drew the conclusion that there are widespread human rights abuses in the U.S. meat and poultry industries.

The Speed Kills You: The Voice of Nebraska's Meat Packing Workers

Meatpacking is still one of the most dangerous jobs in America. Massive disassembly lines can slaughter and process 400 head of livestock per hour, forcing workers to maintain intensely high rates of speed – in often cold conditions, with slippery floors, and electric knives. One hundred years after Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle and almost a decade after Nebraska leadership took action to create the Nebraska Meatpacking Industry Workers Bill of Rights, injury rates in meatpacking are startlingly high – double that of U.S. manufacturing as a whole – and the government estimates that even these statistics undercount actual injury rates. For this reason, this study set out to document safety conditions from the perspective of the workers who live it every day, surveying 455 workers in five communities across the state. We wanted to learn about safety improvements and practices that are worth building upon, as well as the key factors that continue to create extreme risk for the many thousands of people who are a part of bringing meat and poultry to our kitchen tables.

Read the Full Report | Executive Summary | Press Release | Press Coverage

Appleseed Releases Report on Nebraska’s Meatpacking Workers Bill of Rights

One hundred years after Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle and six years after Governor Mike Johanns signed the Nebraska Meatpacking Industry Workers Bill of Rights to improve safety in Nebraska’s leading industry, Nebraska Appleseed set out to determine whether this unique state-level policy has been making a difference. In a new report released today, “Dignity on the Line: An Evaluation of the Nebraska Meatpacking Workers Bill of Rights,” Appleseed finds that the policy has been an important first step but that there is significant work yet to be done.

Read the Full Appleseed Report | Read the Executive Summary

Safe food comes from a safe workplace: Release of “Fast Food Nation” puts meatpacking work conditions back in public eye

The release of the movie Fast Food Nation again puts meatpacking, Nebraska’s leading industry, in the public eye. The movie tells the story of how billions of burgers go from the ranch to the fast food consumer - which is to say, to each and every one of us. Those burgers, of course, don’t just materialize out of thin air, neatly packaged with a side of fries. There are a lot of stories behind that burger, including how it comes from the sweat and tears of thousands of low-paid, mostly immigrant Latino workers in towns and cities across Nebraska and other major meatpacking states. Read the Full Appleseed Statement

Download a printable Post Card to the Secretary of Agriculture. Tell him to Slow Down The Line!

Know Your Rights During Immigration Enforcement Or Raids

Know Your Rights/Conozca Sus Derechos Wallet Card English-Español (UFCW)

Know Your Rights at Home, in the Car, and on Foot. English | Español (ACLU)

Know Your Rights at Home and at Work English | Español
(Ejecución de las Leyes de Inmigración: Conozca sus derechos en su hogar y su trabajo respecto a Inmigración) (National Immigration Law Center)

Know Your Rights if You Have Been Arrested or Detained by the U.S. Government English | Español
(CASA of Maryland)