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Media Tip Sheet
February 17, 2023
Meat Packing Facilities Have High Rates of Injury - Unsafe Working Conditions for Children
Melissa J. Perry, ScD, MHS, Dean of the George Mason University College of Public Health, is available to comment on working conditions and labor practices of meat packing companies. Her experience as an epidemiologist includes studying laceration injuries among meat packing workers.
Perry says:
"Those who work in meatpacking facilities have some of the highest rates of injuries and illnesses of any occupation. The work is physically demanding and fast paced, dictated by the speed of 'the line' or the conveyor belt that continuously moves animal carcasses through different points of production such as slaughtering, eviscerating, deboning, cutting, trimming, and packaging for distribution to grocery stores. Employing children in a dangerous environment like this is a clear violation of child labor laws and puts children at serious risk of injury or death.
At a time when many industries have found ways to reduce physical demands on workers, the design of meat processing plants are much as they were in the 1980s. Unlike other food commodities, such as fruits and vegetables, meat processing relies entirely on human labor with very little automation. Many American meatpackers are immigrants.”
Perry commented extensively on the meat packing industry's slow response to COVID precautions.
Contact: Michelle Thompson mthomp7@gmu.edu, 703-993-3485