Frito-Lay Workers Go on Strike with Some Claiming They Face 84-Hour Work Weeks

[PoliticAverse]

Imagine a world without Doritos, Cheetos, Fritos, and Tostitos. A world without Lay's potato chips, Sun Chips, and more. Frito-Lay products are ubiquitous across the country — and workers at one of the brand's largest manufacturing facilities are hoping that halting production on these snacks will give them the leverage they need to receive the pay and benefits they believe they deserve.

Last Monday, around 600 employees (reportedly about 80 percent of the full-time workforce) went on strike at the Frito-Lay plant in Topeka, Kansas — one of more than 30 manufacturing plants the company operates in the United States. Brad Schmidt — vice president for the Midwest region for the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers which represents the workers — told The Wichita Eagle that the union was striking for better pay, better working conditions, and less mandatory overtime.

The overtime issue seems to be especially contentious. Mark McCarter, who works at the plant, told the Topeka Capital-Journal that Frito-Lay often has employees working 12 hours per day, seven days a week — apparently with as little as eight hours of break time in between shifts. In an opinion piece published by the paper, Cherie Renfro backed up this assertion, piling on plenty of claims of her own, including this shocking allegation: "When a co-worker collapsed and died, you had us move the body and put in another co-worker to keep the line going," she wrote.

Renfro also stated that one classification of worker in the plant had seen its wages increase by just 20 cents per hour over the past decade. Monk Drapeaux-Stewart — a box drop technician — told the site Labor Notes that his wages are up just 77 cents over the past 12 years. "Milk's gone up. Meat has gone up. Everything has gone up," Tracy Johnson, a 30-year Frito-Lay veteran, told the Kansas News Service. "But our wages have stayed the same."

Read the rest at: https://www.foodandwine.com/news/frito-lay-worker-strike-topeka

[Runningdawg]

1. Welcome to the post-covid world

Where employers will make overtime mandatory, rather than hire more workers. I would also like to point out medical workers routinely work (pre-covid) 12-16 hr shifts for days at a time. If you are on call, it's nothing to work 24-36 hours in a row, with barely a bathroom break, a couple tlmes a week. I'm retired now and didn't know anyone who died ON the job, but I know a few who commited suicide.

[PoliticAverse]

2. "but I know a few who commited suicide." - that's really sad.

If your job causes you to want to kill yourself please get some help - and find a different job.

National Suicide Prevention Lifeline

1-800-273-8255

[Runningdawg]

3. I was nearly one of them. I called the hotline. Your solution is easier said than done.

As my hosptials employee insurance did not cover mental health the only suggestion the hot line gave me was - are you ready for this? Quit your job and you MIGHT qualify for free help. 25 years ago I found a therapist I could afford. His advice? Get right with Jesus. Welcome to Oklahoma.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

4. The fact that nurses routinely work a 12 hour shift is something

I have long found disturbing. Those shifts became the norm some years ago. I really don't want to be taken care of by someone who has been on their feet for 11 plus hours. No one is at their peak hours and hours into working.

[The Jungle 1]

6. I worked 12 hour shifts for many years.

Three days one week four days the next week. It really was a nice way to work. I had a lot of days off. A lot of nurses work this same shift. It is not good if you are doing 12 hours 7 days that is inhumane. It borders on slavery. Some police roll the shift from day to night and that is even worse. It is very unhealthy.
The days I worked it was nothing but work and sleep. There was no life.
I will gladly pay more for my salty snacks if the company gives those people back their life. I will also gladly boycott them. Boycotts work.
Oh by the way thanks Reagan.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

7. When I was an airline ticket agent,

overtime was routine. If the flights were late or were cancelled, sometimes we'd be there a whole lot longer. If the twelve hour shift absolutely ends, that's one thing. But I also know that 12 hours straight, even if only three or four days, is exhausting. And notice that the days you worked you did nothing but work and sleep. I don't think that's a good thing.

Today's On Point, an NPR show, spent the entire hour talking about a shorter work week, shorter work day. Companies are discovering that people are invariably more productive in the shorter week. Over the hour lots of aspects were discussed, including how it's sometimes tricky to implement, and the fact that a lot of people in low wage jobs such as retail or food, cannot get scheduled for more than maybe 20 hours a week.

A nursing home somewhere was referenced a couple of times. A while back it put all its Certified Nursing Associates on a 32 hour (I think) week with the same pay as before, and suddenly they are not having the staff turnover, patient care is better, and so on. Anyway, I think you'd find that program interesting.

[LifeLongDemocratic]

5. Welcome to America

This has always been the way it is in the USA. That is why unions are so important. It is also why when the US is compared to all the other developed countries, the US is always at the bottom of the list. The US is not exceptional and borders on being a shithole country. It already is in the deep red States. Only the deep blue States like Massachusetts can be competitively compared to other parts of the developed world. Boston is truly a European style city.