Refugee Jobs in Tennessee

Tyson Foods changing America one town at a time; up next Humboldt, TN Posted by Ann Corcoran 12/1/17

This time with the help of Tennessee Governor Haslam and Senator (Little Bob) Corker.

As you know BIG MEAT and BIG CHICKEN are major drivers of the US Refugee Admissions Program and here we learn that Tyson Foods new plant in Humboldt, TN will employ 1,500 workers. 

But get this: the pols admit that unemployment is really low, so where might those workers, who will do mostly dirty jobs, come from?

You guessed it! Immigrant and refugee labor will soon be streaming into a town of less than 9,000 people!

And before I get to this really bad news for the citizens of Humboldt, this gives me another opportunity to show you the direct connection between giant global corporations like Tyson Foods (JBS Swift and Chobani too) and the federally funded refugee ‘religious’ contractors placing refugees secretly in to American towns. See Lutherans sign deal with Tyson Foods!

Now to Tyson Foods’ new deal in Tennessee…..

From the Commercial Appeal (hat tip: Joanne):

Tyson Foods will build a new chicken production complex in Humboldt — 75 miles northeast of Memphis — that will employ 1,500 people, company and government officials announced Monday. [Memphis is the closest refugee placement office to Humboldt, but the feds and Catholic Charities could expand to Humboldt as has happened in other states to accommodate meatpackers.—ed]

The $300 million project is to start operations in late 2019 to meet what Tyson described in a release as “strong consumer demand for its chicken.”

It is historic alright. The town will be changed demographically forever! The new plant in Humboldt will make pre-packaged trays of chicken for retail grocery stores nationwide and is expected to process 1.25 million birds per week, according to the company.

“This is an historic day for Humboldt, Gibson County and West Tennessee,” Humboldt Mayor Marvin Sikes said in a prepared statement. “I want to thank Tyson Foods for their commitment to our community and region. The significant job creation and capital investment that will result from this project will have a positive impact on our community that will last for many years, and I could not be more excited about the future of Humboldt and Gibson County.”

Plant will employ 1,500 people

Tyson Foods picked West Tennessee over potential sites in other states. Gov. Bill Haslam said in a prepared statement, “The new facility will be Tyson’s fifth location in Tennessee and it means a great deal that a company of this magnitude will continue to grow its footprint in our state. I appreciate Tyson for its continued commitment to Tennessee and for helping us become one step closer to our goal of making Tennessee the No. 1 location in the Southeast for high quality jobs.”

Then here at The News and Observer we learn….

Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam and U.S. Sen. Bob Corker attended the news conference and praised Tyson for choosing Humboldt, a rural city of about 8,200 people located about 85 miles (135 kilometers) northeast of Memphis. Tennessee competed with other states for the project. Doug Ramsey, group president of poultry for Tyson, would not discuss which other states were in the mix.

Haslam said that while unemployment in Tennessee is low — at 3 percent as of September — “it’s no news that some of our rural counties have struggled.” He called the plant a “big deal” for the state. 
The company’s portfolio of products includes Tyson chicken, Jimmy Dean, Hillshire Farm and Ball Park.

So, if the unemployment rate stands at 3%, where are the workers going to come from?  It might be a financial big deal for bigwigs and assorted hangers-on, but not for the citizens of Humboldt!

Tyson currently operates four facilities in the state, employing about 5,000 people. The company says it paid Tennessee farmers more than $61 million in the 2016 fiscal year.

The announcement marks the second major economic development project Tyson has begun this year in Tennessee. In August, the company announced an $84 million expansion of operations in Union City. That project is expected to create about 300 jobs.

I think we all need to start making a list of the products companies that employee foreign workers (whose salaries we supplemented with our tax dollars) are producing and become more discerning shoppers.

See my ever expanding file on Tyson Foods, here.  Don’t miss posts on Shelbyville, TN where Tyson Foods initially succumbed to pressure to dump the Labor Day holiday in exchange for a Muslim holiday for its workers.

And, definitely don’t miss: BIG MEAT squawks when Trump lowered refugee ceiling, here.  Or tiny Nebraska town defeats BIG CHICKEN, here.

Wonder why the Heritage Foundation completely missed the boat and never looked at the impact of global corporations and refugee labor on American towns in their supposed “roadmap for reform” plans for the UN/US Refugee Admissions Program?

Could it be because powerful Republicans are pushing for migrant labor for their big business donors?

https://refugeeresettlementwatch.wordpress.com/2017/12/01/tyson-foods-changing-america-one-town-at-a-time-up-next-humboldt-tn/