Is Catholic Charities bringing in foreign
laborers for a poultry plant to compete with Americans? by Ann Corcoran 9/26/16
Here are some
of the facts as we know them: West Virginia is a relatively new resettlement state
which has received only 176 refugees in the last ten fiscal years.
However, in
addition to Catholic Charities resettling refugees, Episcopal Migration
Ministries wants to open
a new office in Charleston. Presently CC has three
locations and one of
those is in Moorefield, WV.
This is the
magnificent headquarters building Brazilian-owned JBS has in Greeley, CO. JBS
owns most of Pilgrim’s Pride. So think about it! If you have Pilgrim’s Pride or
any other JBS company in your town, it is being changed so a foreign-owned
company can have cheap/compliant/foreign labor. (This is a photograph I took as
I passed through Greeley on my RRW road trip this summer.)
What else is in Moorefield? I’ll tell you! There is a Pilgrim’s
Pride poultry plant located there. Here are some things we know about Pilgrim’s Pride:
It is owned by the Brazilian meat giant—JBS (you may know them as Swift & Co.)
headquartered in Greeley, CO. And, now get
this. The very same Labor Department that I would normally be complaining
about, says that in some locations in the US, Pilgrim’s Pride is DISCRIMINATING against
African American job applicants, Caucasians and women! They are choosing
Hispanic laborers (and it would appear refugee laborers) over Americans!
This is from a
Dept. of Labor Press
Release dated
10/7/2015: ATLANTA — One of the world’s largest chicken processors systematically
discriminated against qualified African-American applicants seeking entry-level
jobs as laborers and operatives at its chicken plant in Marshville, North
Carolina, the U.S.
Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs alleges in
a lawsuit filed against Pilgrim’s Pride Corporation.
“Discrimination
will not be tolerated by employers who profit from government contracts,” said
OFCCP Director Patricia A. Shiu. “OFCCP will use every action available by law,
including canceling Pilgrim’s federal contracts if necessary, to ensure workers
are treated fairly.”
The complaint
results from an OFCCP investigation into the company’s selection procedures.
This is the second lawsuit filed by OFCCP against the company in less than 30
days. The first complaint, filed on Sept. 15, 2015, alleges that Pilgrim’s Pride
systematically discriminated against qualified African-American, Caucasian, and
female applicants for entry-level laborer and operative positions at its
chicken plant in Athens, Alabama. Both complaints were filed with the
department’s Office of Administrative Law Judges and seek complete make-whole
relief, including instatement of qualified black applicants at the chicken
processing facility, payment of lost wages, interest, front wages, and other
fringe benefits, including but not limited to retroactive seniority.
As a result, some African-American, Caucasian,
and female applicants were rejected despite having education and experience
levels comparable to male and Hispanic applicants. The Athens plant is no longer in
operation.
Based in Greeley, Colorado, Pilgrim’s Pride is
the largest chicken producer in the U.S. The Brazilian food giant JBS S.A. owns
75 percent of Pilgrim’s Pride’s outstanding common stock.
From 2007 to
2011,
Pilgrim’s Pride received more than $36 million in federal contracts as a
provider of poultry to agencies such as the departments of Defense and
Agriculture. Could that same discrimination being going on in other Pilgrim’s Pride
plants?
Back to
Moorefield and Catholic Charities. I checked the numbers from the Refugee
Processing Center and here is what I learned. In the last 10 fiscal years, 176
refugees were resettled in WV. 49% of those went to Moorefield (CC lists
poultry processing job availability there in its R & P Abstract).
Beginning in
about Fiscal Year 2010, CC began resettling Burmese refugees (36 total) in
Moorefield. In 2012 they began placing Eritreans there (42) and then 6 Iraqis
and 2 Ethiopians followed. I know that numbers-wise it is small compared
to the numbers being placed for the benefit of BIG MEAT around the country, but
it strikes me as a very clear indication of how supposed ‘religious’ charities
are working for the benefit of meat processors. But why? Is it all about
money?
What is in it for the pols? Then we get to the politicians. Moorefield
is in WV District 2 (Rep Alex Mooney) who won that district when former Rep and now US Senator
Shelley Moore Capito moved on to the Senate. Both are Republicans. What
is in it for them to defend this practice of hiring refugees when African
Americans, and Caucasian women need work in WV?
I don’t know
the answer except for the Dems we know they are looking for more Democrat
voters. But as each of you begins to unravel why refugee labor is changing your
towns (and why your elected officials aren’t listening to you), you need to
figure out what is in it for Republican elected officials at all levels because
I can assure
you this is not about ‘humanitarianism!’ That is only the cover for big
business (and the Chamber of Commerce!) to continue to push for more refugee
admissions to the US.
https://refugeeresettlementwatch.wordpress.com/2016/09/26/west-virginia-is-catholic-charities-bringing-in-foreign-laborers-for-a-poultry-plant-to-compete-with-americans/
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