12/26/06 Mid West Packing Plants, NW Consumers

If you think the raid that occurred at the Mid West meat packing plants doesn't affect us, think again! A shortage of labor in the meat packing industry can translate to a shortage in our wallet pretty quickly. Because the meat packing industry has become dependant on an undocumented labor force, when that "force" goes away, employers must pay higher wages to secure workers and that cost is passed onto us. When police rounded up undocumented workers in six states, the following day the nations cattle slaughter dropped by 9 percent. The slaughter numbers have now returned because other US plants were able to absorb the excess cattle, but that might not always be the case. Packing plants aren't the only ones dependant on migrant labor. Imagine if these raids occurred in the hotel and restaurant industry. Why didn't they? So why was the meat industry in the cross hairs once again? Maybe there isn't such thing as cheap labor, whether we pay more for a pound of hamburger or higher medical and insurance rates caused by the influx of illegals we get stuck either way.