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Several Large Chicken Companies Accused of Conspiring to Keep Wages Down


If there was ever a reason to cry foul, this is it.  Last week, a lawsuit was filed against several of the largest chicken producers in the country (including Tyson Foods, Sanderson Farms, and Pilgrim’s Pride, among others), on the grounds that these companies unlawfully sought to suppress wages in the industry, specifically among immigrant workers.  Wages in the industry reportedly average around $11/hour, barely placing these workers above the poverty line.

These 18 companies, which make up 90% of the chicken producers in the country, have allegedly been arranging clandestine meetings since at least 2009 in which they exchange information as to how much each company paid its line and maintenance workers.  The lawsuit alleges that detailed wage and benefits information was exchanged at these meetings so that the companies could coordinate and set wages at an even level in the the industry, without any one company paying its workers more than the others.  As well, when one company would move to expand, the other chicken producers were apparently consulted as to the appropriate wages for the new positions.  With that being said, one of the more troubling allegations centers around a claim that senior executives at these companies would chastise a rival when that other company raised wages beyond the ‘agreed upon’ rates set at these secret meetings.

The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages but is based upon interviews with former employees.  While a few of the companies have publicly denied the allegations in the lawsuit, others have not commented for the time being.  With the recent immigration raids at a few plants in Mississippi, workers on production lines have been, and likely will continue to be, in the news going forward.


For additional information:  https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-09-03/biggest-chicken-processors-accused-of-immigrant-wage-plot

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