Lawsuit Fundamentally Changed the Rights of Workers Across an Entire Industry

Ends the industry-wide theft of wages that poultry plants have been committing for decades.

On November 8, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled that poultry and other meatpacking industries cannot continue to deny workers’ wages for time they spend obtaining required safety equipment and reporting to their work location in the plant.

This victory for workers’ rights was possible because courageous plaintiffs like Maria Martinez and other workers in Washington and Maine risked their jobs to sue their employers and fight back against industry efforts to steal from them 30 to 40 minutes a day.

Thanks to this decision, the hard-working employees who cut and package our Thanksgiving turkeys – over 50% of whom are women – have the right to be paid for their time. Before this decision, the industry’s executives were illegally denying at least $184 million a year from their meat packers and cutters.

The Lawsuits Behind the U.S. Supreme Court Decision

This victory didn’t happen overnight. The lawsuits that ultimately went to the U.S. Supreme Court began over 7 ½ years ago, requiring an extraordinary commitment from the plaintiffs who risked their jobs and the attorneys who stood with them. The two cases the U.S. Supreme Court used for their decision - Alvarez v. IBP, Inc. in Washington and Tum v. Barber in Maine – were filed independently, but dealt with similar issues of unjust denial of wages.

Maria Martinez, a named plaintiff in the Washington lawsuit that went to the U.S. Supreme Court, initially tried to seek owed wages by working from within. However, when it became clear the industry did not want to follow the law, she organized fellow workers to stand up for their rights in court.

In a state like Mississippi, where the poultry industry is the fourth-largest employer, Maria’s efforts have not gone unnoticed. “Workers across the board now have legal recourse,” said Anita Grabowski at the Mississippi Poultry Workers’ Center, adding that without a state Dept of Labor, lawsuits are the last line of defense for many workers.

Well-Documented Abuses of Poultry Workers' Rights

Repeated abuses against the workers in the poultry industry highlight the importance of a civil justice system that allows workers to hold employers accountable and enforces the nation’s labor laws.

The nonpartisan Government Accountability Office (GAO), U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), Human Rights Watch (HRW), Equal Justice Center, United Commercial Food Workers Union (UCFW), and other advocates of workers’ rights all report that the poultry industry is rife with violations of workers' basic rights to compensation for their time.

• 100% of surveyed poultry processing plants failed to pay workers for all hours worked, according to the most recent DOL survey.
  
• One in five poultry workers is seriously injured on the job. [UCFW]
• Injury rate among meat and poultry workers is among the highest of any industry. [GAO]
• Injuries range from common strains and cuts to serious injuries such as amputation and fractures. [GAO]

Making a Difference in the Courts

The Supreme Court victory for workers shows that there is hope for justice - as long as our nation's civil justice system remains in tact and the courts can be a place where even the most vulnerable employee can stand up to the mightiest CEO.

“Working conditions in U.S. meat and poultry plants should trouble the conscience of every American who eats beef, pork or chicken,” reports Human Rights Watch in the Washington Post.

To lawyers, these conditions are not only troubling - they're also illegal. In their jobs, they fight a constant uphill battle to bring justice to workers and enforce the nation's labor laws. When they win, it can make all the difference.

November 2005