JBS offered Greeley meatpacking workers 90 cents per hour over two years—roughly 4% total—while the company’s parent corporation earned $63.1 billion in the first nine months of 2025. The 3,800 workers voted 99% to authorize a strike February 4. Eight months after their contract expired, they face the choice that built the American labor movement: accept what’s offered or walk.
The last meatpacker strike in the United States ended in 1985 at Hormel Foods in Minnesota. The last in Colorado was 1980 at the Monfort Packing Plant, now owned by JBS. The Greeley facility serves as JBS’s flagship location and the largest feed-beef plant in the country. The union can trigger the strike with seven days’ notice.
JBS Beef North America reported $20.5 billion in revenue through the first nine months of 2025, up 14.5%. Parent company JBS S.A. earned $63.1 billion during the same period. Workers rejected the 90-cent offer while company revenue climbed by billions.
In 2020, six workers at the Greeley plant died from COVID-19 while 290 others tested positive and 51 required hospitalization. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration assessed a penalty of $14,502 in May 2022. JBS earned $52 billion in revenue that year.
Between 2022 and 2023, a Department of Labor investigation found 102 children ages 13 to 17 working overnight shifts at five JBS facilities including Greeley. The minors cleaned hazardous equipment—back saws, brisket saws, head splitters. JBS paid $4 million in a January 2025 settlement and admitted no liability.
United Food and Commercial Workers Local 7 filed multiple unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board. The union alleged regressive bargaining, firing of a bargaining committee member, punishment of workers who filed grievances, and threats to withhold bonuses if workers strike. Workers say JBS increased production line speeds while cutting hours and charging employees for personal protective equipment required by law.
“We have been bargaining for eight months and JBS has prevented us from reaching a contract as a result of their Unfair Labor Practices,” said Leticia Avalos, a JBS worker. “They continue to increase chain speeds and create dangerous working conditions all while reducing hours for workers. At the same time, the company is insisting on being able to steal workers’ pay through improper wage deductions.”
The workforce speaks 57 languages and includes hundreds of Haitian refugees holding Temporary Protected Status. The Trump administration is attempting to revoke TPS for Haitian migrants. A federal judge blocked the revocation last week, but the Department of Homeland Security continues pursuing it. A 2024 lawsuit alleged JBS recruited Haitian immigrants to work at the Greeley plant, then subjected them to poor working and living conditions.
JBS said it presented “a comprehensive offer that reflects the national agreement reached with UFCW International and accepted at our other large processing facilities.” The company said the agreement includes “meaningful wage increases and a pension plan.” JBS did not address the unfair labor practice allegations.
Weld County’s largest employer discovered the limits of penalty-based compliance. When the cost of dead workers measures in thousands and the cost of employing children measures in millions, and revenue measures in tens of billions, the arithmetic favors violations over prevention. The 99% vote suggests 3,800 workers reached the same conclusion.
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