030310 Workers Strike Tyson Meat Plant in Wisc.

Jefferson, WI - Workers went on strike at a Tyson Foods Inc.Wisconsin meat plant on Friday after rejecting a contract offer that would cut wages and raise employee health care contributions, the union said.

The Jefferson, Wisconsin, plant employs 470 workers and produces pepperoni for Tombstone, DiGiorno, Domino's and Jack's pizzas, as well as hams, bologna, and hot dogs, the union, UFCW Local 538, said in a statement.

Tyson, the largest U.S. meat company, said the plant, which it acquired in 2001 when it bought beef and pork company IBP Inc., will continue to operate with workers and management personnel from Jefferson and elsewhere.

The union statement said Tyson's latest offer would, among other things, cut pay on average by 73 cents an hour, freeze wages for four years, increase employee health care payments up to $40 a week, cut sick leave by 50%, and cut vacations by two weeks.

Springdale, Arkansas-based Tyson said proposed pay cuts would apply only to new employees, not current ones. Bonuses would be paid each year instead of wage increases.

Also, the cuts in sick leave would apply only to the few employees eligible for more than 13 weeks, the company said. Vacations would be limited to four weeks, except for employees currently eligible for five and six weeks.

Higher health care costs prompted the proposed rise in employee contributions, Tyson said.

"The contract offered by Tyson has been modified from the previous contract to try and bring it more closely in line with other existing union contracts Tyson has around the country," the company said.

Contract negotiations at the plant have been under way for eight months. In January, Tyson gave the union a 30-day notice, saying it would terminate the current extended contract at midnight on Feb. 25, the union said.

"Tyson's proposal would devastate my family," said John Hernandez, a 25-year plant employee, in the statement. "The company wants to cut our wages and increase the cost of our health care coverage. Our families can't live on that."

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