GREELEY, Colo. — A tentative agreement has been reached between JBS and the union representing workers at the company's Greeley plant following a three-week strike, the union announced Friday.
The agreement comes after workers returned to work Tuesday, and the company and union came back to the bargaining table Thursday.
United Food and Commercial Workers Local 7, the union representing workers at the meatpacking plant, said the tentative agreement will be presented to workers for a ratification vote Sunday.
The agreement is set to cover 3,800 Greeley workers, according to the union. Denver7 reached out to Local 7 for details about the agreement, but the union's president, Kim Cordova, said the details will be shared with workers first. Sunday's meeting will not be open to media, she said.
"Workers are afraid of retaliation by JBS and also want to ask questions freely," she wrote in an email.
JBS had not responded to request for comment about the tentative agreement by the time of publication.
"Workers remain united and will continue to fight until JBS fully ends its unfair labor practices and gives workers a contract offer that protects them, shows workers the respect they deserve, and pays them a livable wage," union president Kim Cordova said in a release about the return to the bargaining table.
Ahead of the return to the bargaining table, a JBS spokesperson said the company's last and best final offer remained on the table.
The three-week strike marked the first major U.S. meatpacking strike in over 40 years, and Denver7 reported that JBS moved production to its other facilities to keep the impacts on production low during the strike.
"Local 7 members demonstrated extraordinary courage, unity, and resolve on the picket line," the union's announcement said.
JBS is headquartered in Greeley and has operations in the U.S., Australia, the United Kingdom, Mexico, Canada, Europe and New Zealand, according to the company's website. JBS is the top producer in the world of beef and chicken, according to the company website, and is the largest employer in Weld County, according to the Northern Colorado Economic Alliance.
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