Worker Action and Employer Response

Arkansas poultry processing workers have been pushing back against difficult and often dangerous working conditions. Nearly half (43%) of workers surveyed reported that they or a coworker have previously spoken up to a supervisor about health and safety issues or other conditions of the workplace. Some have reported speaking to coworkers about their concerns as well.

Ethnicity and nationality appears to play a role in workers’ willingness to speak to a supervisor about problems in the workplace. White workers were much more likely to report that they or a coworker had complained (70%), compared to black (46%), Latino (39%), or API (38%) workers. Among U.S.-born workers, over half (56%) reported that they or a coworker had spoken up, compared to 38% of foreign-born workers. These results are not surprising; foreign-born worker who complain may have much more at stake than U.S.-born workers, because they face the possibility of retaliatory deportation if they or any of their peers are undocumented. [116] Workers from different cultural or national backgrounds also may have varying expectations and norms regarding working conditions that could encourage or discourage complaint to a supervisor. Furthermore, for workers that speak little or no English, communication with a supervisor may be an additional barrier to speaking up about problems.

Employers’ reported responses to worker complaints varied. About half of workers who reported speaking up about working conditions to a supervisor said that the supervisor had responded to correct the issue. The other half reported that no changes were made. Of the workers who reported that they or a coworker spoke up about working conditions, 32% said they faced punishment from their supervisor in response. Black and API workers were more likely to report that they experienced retaliation, compared to Latino and white workers (Table 27). Latino workers who reported making a complaint also were least likely to report experiencing retaliation in response.

In addition to those who have spoken directly to their supervisors, quite a few workers said they discussed their concerns about workplace conditions with their peers. Over one-third (36%) responded positively when asked whether they had ever tried to share or discuss information about workers’ rights with coworkers or customers. For 17% of these workers, their employer reportedly tried to stop this from happening by threatening or intimidating the worker.

NEXT: Chapter 4: Conclusions