Tyson Foods workers get paid sick leave; 75% vaccinated
Source: AP
By ALEXANDRA OLSON
NEW YORK (AP) Tyson Foods is offering its front-line workers paid sick leave for the first time, part of an agreement that secured union support for its mandate that all U.S. employees get vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus.
The meatpacking giant said 90,000 or 75% of its 120,000 U.S. workers have now been vaccinated, up from 50% when it announced the mandate on Aug. 3. Workers have until Nov. 1 to get vaccinated, but the agreement with the United Food and Commercial Workers provides for medical and religious exemptions.
Tyson Foods, which owns the Jimmy Dean and Hillshire Farm brands, is among the few companies with a large front-line workforce to impose a vaccine mandate so far. Many companies have taken aggressive steps to encourage workers to get the vaccines while avoiding mandates that could worsen a labor shortage.
Under the agreement with UFCW, Tyson workers can earn up to 20 hours of paid sick leave. The UFCW represents 26,000 Tyson workers but the Springdale, Arkansas-based company said the benefit would extend to all employees.
Read more: https://apnews.com/article/business-health-coronavirus-pandemic-9a16ce530713d7ebda4f38536005da9a
mountain grammy
(26,605 posts)How is that a thing?
packman
(16,296 posts)Nothing to crow about
PatSeg
(47,351 posts)mountain grammy
(26,605 posts)a bad union is better than no union. But people who process food products should not be at work when sick, full stop.
The UFCW needs to be a lot stronger, for the safety of the workers and consumers.
70sEraVet
(3,479 posts)to any employee whose job requires them to be in contact with a food product. Its a matter of national importance.
DemocraticPatriot
(4,336 posts)They will still have their "freedumb!"
Nobody has to work at a company requiring vaccination, they can find a job elsewhere. No one is pointing a gun at their head...
... except maybe COVID.