Interview: How the US is Making Meatpacking Jobs Even More Dangerous

Why is this bad for workers? The faster you have to do your job the more likely you are to get hurt – to cut yourself by accident, or get caught in machinery, or develop a musculoskeletal disorder. Almost every worker I interviewed spoke about dealing with chronic pain. A number of older workers had limited ability to use their hands after years on the line. I spoke with a mother and her son who worked at a Nebraska cattle plant, and watched as the son grabbed a bottle of water and opened it, giving it to his mom. It’s a force of habit, he said, because his mom can’t do it anymore. That resonated…

© Human Rights Watch - mercredi 4 septembre 2019