3,800 Workers Strike at One of Nation’s Largest Beef Plants

The local union rejected a national labor deal, arguing it did not reflect Colorado’s higher cost of living.
3,800 Workers Strike at One of Nation’s Largest Beef Plants
People picket outside of the JBS meatpacking plant in Greeley, Colo., on March 16, 2026. Michael Ciaglo/Getty Images
Bill Pan
Bill Pan
Reporter
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About 3,800 unionized workers at JBS USA, the nation’s largest meat processor, walked off the job on March 16, as beef prices remain at record highs.

The strike started before sunrise outside the company’s flagship beef plant in Greeley, Colorado, one of the largest facilities of its kind in the United States by volume. A video shared by United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 7, the union representing the workers, showed participants forming picket lines in the dark as the morning shift was about to begin.