On the Cargill Cedar Rapids strike line, workers say No. 1 issue is respect

Workers say that the company not respecting them is a major factor of why there’s an ongoing Cargill Cedar Rapids strike.

The three-year contract between Cargill—specifically, the corn milling plant in the city—and around 100 workers unionized with Teamsters Local 238 expired at midnight Tuesday. Workers voted to strike hours later, on Tuesday evening, and have been on strike since. Read that story here.

Normally, workers these days have wages or benefits in mind. But employees I spoke with on Wednesday told me there was a deeper issue at play.

Keith Zahrt, who has worked at Cargill for 15 years, said he understands that Cargill has to run the plant “24/7, 365 days a year.” He’s missed holidays with his family when he’s called in, and missed school plays his 8-year-old daughter has performed in.

But when workers asked Cargill to give them consideration for wages that hadn’t been keeping up with inflation, they said they got none.

“If you ask everybody out here, everybody will bring up the word ‘respect,'” Zahrt said. “All’s we’re asking for is a little consideration for the sacrifices that we make.”

Koby Sprous, who has worked at Cargill for two years, said sometimes workers are asked to do shifts of 12 hours or even 16 hours at a time.

“We’re the ones that bring them money,” Sprous said. “We produce everything. We load these trucks, these rail cars, that get sent around the country.”

Making matters worse is the fact that workers at other Cargill plants nearby make more than they do.

“Spending money at the other plants but not able to do it for us is just plain disrespectful,” he said. “Is money part of it? Of course. But it’s also just the respect factor.”

 

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The vote to strike was “overwhelming,” said Joe Kirchhoff, chief union steward at the plant.

He echoed the issues brought up by Zahrt and Sprous, and added workers felt they “took a hit” with their 2021 contract, agreeing to more concessions because of the pandemic.

“They thought they were trying to help the company out then,” Kirchhoff said. “Now, they don’t feel the company is returning that favor.”

Kirchhoff said they had been negotiating with the company for seven days out of the previous two weeks to try to come to a resolution on wages, with no success. A message seeking comment from Cargill was not immediately returned.

“There’s a lot of the membership that don’t feel that they were treated fairly” by management, he added. “So it’s kind of a culmination of everything.”

Workers all said the community can support them by driving by the plant’s two entrances, at 1710 16th Ave. SE in Cedar Rapids, anytime; “We’re running it 24/7,” Kirchhoff said. Water, snacks, and supplies are welcome, but even just stopping to chat, walk the line, or honking in support all helps.

“At this point, they’re strong,” Kirchhoff said. “They’re determined to get something that they feel is fair. Obviously it’s early, but I don’t see this breaking down. Membership is very adamant: They want their fair share.”