A new survey of more than 500 poultry workers in Arkansas found that 62 percent had experienced some kind of wage violation (e.g. not being paid or being deducted unfairly for safety gear) and 44 percent reported being verbally or sexually harassed. The survey included workers employed by several different companies, including Tyson, Cargill, and Pilgrim’s Pride.
Arkansas ranks second for broiler chickens, producing 11 percent of the nation’s total supply, according to the report. The study was led by The Northwest Arkansas Workers’ Justice Center, along with the Food Labor Research Center at the University of California, Berkeley, the Unitarian Universalist Service Committee, and Oxfam America.
“Arkansas poultry workers make, on average, approximately $13.84 per hour ($28,792 per year). Even in a household with 2 adults making this wage ($57,584 total), this is well below living wage for a family of 4 ($71,000 is considered a living wage in nonmetro South),” said the report.
Many workers, especially women, said supervisors did not let them go to the bathroom, to the point that some reported losing control of their bladder on the line.
“When I was pregnant, I had to constantly go to the bathroom, and a supervisor told me, ‘Why don’t women hold it like I (male supervisor) have to hold it all day?’” one woman told researchers. “Another factor is the fact that as women, we have our menstrual cycle, so we need to go to the bathroom.”
Asked by Arkansas’ KFSM news for a response to the report, Tyson Foods told the station: “We wouldn’t be a successful company without our Team Members. We care about them and we’re continually working to make sure they’re treated fairly. We believe in fair compensation, a safe and healthy work environment and providing our Team Members with a voice in the workplace. Our company has met several times with the human rights group Oxfam America and has also reached out to the NWA Workers’ Justice Center to talk about what we do to help our poultry Team Members succeed.”