In March, Tyson Foods announced that it would be closing two Arkansas plants in an effort to streamline its poultry business.
The two plants – in Glen Allen, Virginia, and Van Buren, Arkansas – employ a combined 1,600 workers.
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Despite the Van Buren plant’s impending closure, it was recently revealed that 150 of its workers have gone on strike.
According to Reuters, the employees have “refused to work in part because Tyson said they would not receive full payouts for vacation time they accrued.”
Tyson reportedly responded by saying it would give full payouts for accrued sick time, and $1,000 bonuses for workers who stayed until the plant’s closure.
The plant is set to close in mid-May and the tight timeline caused a number of workers to quit when the closure was announced.
This created more work for fewer employees, says Venceremos, an organization that advocates for poultry workers in Arkansas.
While Tyson has offered to transfer workers to its Texas facility, most don’t want to uproot their families.
