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Rockingham Poultry Workers Rally

David Kreider

In their ongoing effort to unionize, aggrieved poultry workers in Rockingham County rallied again this month, this time outside the Cargill plant in Dayton. They claim the company willfully violates its own Code of Conduct, as WMRA’s Jessie Knadler reports.

The aim of the protest was to deliver a letter to Cargill management. In it, they asked why the company has contracted with Peter List of Kulture Consulting, which has a long history of breaking up unions. Union activists say that is a direct contradiction of Cargills’ own Code of Conduct that states the company is committed to [quote] “maintaining our employees’ rights to freedom of association and collective bargaining.”

MICHAEL SNELL-FEIKEMA: Our interest here is we want Cargill to live up to what they say they believe in.

Michael Snell-Feikema is a local activist who helped draft the letter on behalf of the workers, the vast majority of whom hail from Central America or are refugees.  Poultry work is notoriously dangerous with high rates of injury and amputation.

One union activist who was terminated last year for harassing employees says it was actually because of his union efforts, according to reporting in the Daily News Record. Another employee talked about being pressured to sign papers the company could later use against her.  

SNELL-FEIKEMA: They follow them around everywhere to see if they can find something they’re doing that they can use against them. It’s sending the message we’re trying to fire you. We’re going to fire you when we get a chance.

Cargill emailed a statement saying that it “respects (s) freedom of association and the right to collectively bargain,” but also that Cargill has a right to [quote] “provide facts to our employees about how unions work and what is at stake in a union election.” The company also pointed out that under the law, workers have a right not to join a union.

Jessie Knadler is the editor and co-founder of Shen Valley Magazine, a quarterly print publication that highlights the entrepreneurial energy of the Shenandoah Valley. She has been reporting off and on for WMRA, and occasionally for National Public Radio, since 2015. Her articles and reporting have appeared everywhere from The Wall Street Journal to Real Simple to The Daily Beast. She is the author of two books, including Rurally Screwed (Berkley), inspired by her popular personal blog of the same name, which she wrote for six years. In her spare time, she teaches Pilates reformer, and is the owner of the equipment-based Pilates studio Speakeasy Pilates in Lexington. She is mom to two incredible daughters, June and Katie. IG: @shenvalleymag