Cargill Locked 1,700 Meatpackers Out for 89 Days and Then Signed a Five-Year Contract

The Vote

Workers at Cargill Meat Solutions’ beef plant in Fort Morgan, Colorado approved a new five-year contract in mid-August, ending an 89-day lockout that had shut the facility since May 20.

The tally was roughly 1,200 in favor and 200 against, with about 300 members abstaining. The workers are represented by Teamsters Local 455.

They Were Locked Out, Not On Strike

This distinction is the center of the story and it is the thing most likely to be gotten wrong.

More than 1,700 employees did not walk off the job. They voted down an earlier contract proposal on May 20, and Cargill then closed the plant. The company said it did so to avoid what it described as safety and operational risks from an unplanned production stoppage.

The workers had not voted to strike. The doors closed from the other side.

What the Contract Contains

First-year hourly wages rise to a range of 24 dollars and 20 cents to 32 dollars and 10 cents depending on the role, up from a previous base of 23 dollars and 50 cents.

The agreement also carries non-wage terms that tend to matter more on a processing line than they read on paper: safety language, bathroom breaks, and job selection based on seniority.

The Win Does Not Start Paying Immediately

Workers return in phases over 30 days, with the first group back on August 24.

For a household that has gone without a paycheck since late May, a ratified contract and a restored paycheck are not the same date. The phased return means the financial recovery from the lockout extends past the end of the lockout itself.

Why It Ended When It Did

Dean Modecker, secretary-treasurer of Local 455, described the shift in the room plainly. It was just a different feeling today, he said, adding that he believed people had simply realized it was time to go back to work.

Cargill, for its part, said that following an extended pause, employees would receive the training and support needed to return safely.

Eighty-nine days is a long time for a major beef facility to sit idle, and the company that closed it is the one that signed a five-year deal to reopen it.

References: Fort Morgan meatpackers vote yes on Cargill contract to end 89-day labor lockout | Fort Morgan meatpackers vote yes on Cargill contract to end 89-day Colorado labor lockout | Cargill workers ratify new contract, ending work lockout, union says