SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA — Minnesota lawmakers and meatpacking workers from Worthington, St. Cloud, and Austin announced new legislation today to improve safety on the job for the men and women employed by meat packing and food processing plants. The proposal would provide paid leave to all meat and poultry processing workers to recuperate from an illness, injury or to care for an ill family member. The “Minnesota Safe Workplaces for Meat and Poultry Processing Workers Act” is authored by Rep. Dan Wolgamott of St. Cloud.
“When COVID-19 first hit Central Minnesota in the spring of 2020, I heard heartbreaking and horrifying stories from my constituents about the unhealthy working conditions at meat processing plants that were jeopardizing the health and financial well being of their families,” said Rep. Wolgamott. “That’s why I’m introducing the Minnesota Safe Workplaces for Meat and Poultry Processing Workers Act, which provides comprehensive workplace health and safety protections, and ensures workers have access to the benefits and training needed to work safely during this pandemic and beyond.”
In 2007, the Minnesota Legislature passed the Packinghouse Workers Bill of Rights which requires employers to provide meatpacking workers with information about their rights as workers and adequate safety equipment. The Packinghouse Workers Bill of Rights was a positive measure, however, it has not proven adequate to protect the safety and rights of meatpacking workers, before or during the time of COVID-19.
Continue reading “State lawmakers, meatpacking workers announce new legislation to improve safety on the job”