[Posted Jan. 16, 2008]

Year-Long Effort Wins
Smithfield Workers
Paid King Holiday
 

     It took a year, but this Martin Luther King holiday workers at the Smithfield plant in Tar Heel, the world's largest pork processing facility, will celebrate his legacy with a paid holiday.  A program is planned at 11:00 a.m. at the First Baptist Church, 302 Moore Street in Fayetteville.
      Last year, Smithfield was forced to cut production when workers braved penalties to walk out or stay home in protest of the company's refusal to grant them the opportunity to honor the civil rights leader. 
      Thousands had signed petitions asking for the holiday and a group of North Carolina clergy published an open letter in The Fayetteville Observer urging the company to "heal the wounds of injustice against the workers and recognize the holiday".

      Reverend Jesse Jackson personally called the company to ask that the workers not be penalized. Instead Smithfield threatened to fire some and penalized others for not showing up for work.  But this holiday, the company relented and on Monday, January 21st, Smithfield will become North Carolina's largest private sector employer recognizing the holiday.
     "Dr. King stood for workers rights and if he were alive today, we know he would be fighting with us to help stop the abuse and make conditions better at the plant." said Julia McMillian, a Smithfield worker at Tar Heel. "We know that he would appreciate this victory that we fought for." 

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