Nonunionized workers at an Illinois egg production facility are striking over what they claim to be poor working conditions and low pay.
About 70 workers walked out on their jobs Monday at the National Pasteurized Eggs facility in Lansing, about 30 miles south of Chicago, and continued to picket outside the plant Thursday. The employees are trying to unionize in an effort to ensure better working conditions and fairer pay, said Jorge Mujica, strategic campaigns organizer for Arise Chicago, a nonprofit helping the workers organize.
Part of the process has been educating the workers, most of whom are Latino immigrants, on their legal rights, Mujica said. The United Food & Commercial Workers International Union local chapter is working with the employees to file a petition to unionize, he said.
“Other than walking out, they didn’t really know what to do. So we started organizing some picket lines and brought some signs and are trying to organize solidarity,” Mujica said.
The workers’ complaints include sexual harassment; unclean and unsafe working conditions; unfair pay, particularly for women; and excessively long hours, Mujica said. The workers on strike represent the majority of a roughly 120-person workforce at the plant, where eggs are cleaned, pasteurized and packaged, he said.
The workers were told before the strike that they would be fired and replaced with temporary workers as the company changes ownership, Mujica said. St. Louis-based Post Holdings is in the process of acquiring National Pasteurized Eggs, which produces eggs marketed as Davidson’s Safest Choice, and folding it into its existing Michael Foods eggs business.
Representatives of National Pasteurized Eggs, Michael Foods and Post Holdings did not immediately return calls seeking comment. Davidson’s Safest Choice eggs are sold at locations in the Chicago area, including several Jewel-Osco and Mariano’s stores.
Gabriel Cabrera, 40, of Hammond, Ind., has worked in the shipping and receiving department at the facility for about two years. Cabrera said he’s required to drive a truck for which he doesn’t have the appropriate license. He also said his salary doesn’t reflect the work.
Among his grievances, Cabrera said the company doesn’t pay workers for holidays or vacations.
“People are very sad because they have a lot of family. Some people here, their whole family works for Michael Foods, and they don’t have money to pay bills,” Cabrera said.
Twitter @GregTrotterTrib
