Smithfield walkout ends

Employees back to work Nov. 18; Company says no discipline

TAR HEEL, N.C. (AP)--Employees at a Smithfield Foods Inc. slaughtering plant returned to work Nov. 18 after walking off their jobs the previous two days to protest the recent firing of immigrants.

In all, about 1,000 nonunion workers, mostly Hispanic, participated in the walkout, and company officials have said they won't be disciplined. The agreement to return to work came late Nov. 17 after Smithfield representatives met with leaders from a Roman Catholic Church to discuss the workers' grievances.

Among those who returned to work were workers who had been fired, said Smithfield spokesman Dennis Pittman. The company is giving the employees more time to sort out problems with Social Security documents, which prompted the firings.

But Pittman said Smithfield is still committed to following immigration laws.

On Nov. 21, Tar Heel plant manager Larry Johnson is scheduled to meet with Smithfield employees to discuss the issues.

Gene Bruskin, a representative of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union who serves as the Smithfield campaign director, called the agreement a "historic break" and said in a statement that the company negotiating "over the workers' concerns is an example of the kind of process that benefits everyone."

The plant in Tar Heel, located about 25 miles south of Fayetteville, employs 5,000 workers and slaughters up to 32,000 hogs a day. Smithfield, Va.-based Smithfield Foods is the world's largest pork processor.

Date: 11/21/06

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