Union, Jobs With Justice Hit With Frivolous Lawsuit
Tue Nov 20, 2007 at 04:29:39 PM PDT
Smithfield Foods is trying to use the courts to intimidate and silence those who are publicizing dangerous and otherwise unpleasant conditions at Smithfield's packing plant.
On October 17, Smithfield filed a racketeering lawsuit against a union and community groups that are organizing workers at Smithfield's plant in Tar Heel, North Carolina. Among the activities that Smithfield alleges are criminal: publishing a report, passing resolutions, and speaking to the press.
Two of the defendants are the United Food and Commercial Workers' Union (UFCW) and Jobs With Justice (JWJ). The lawsuit is described here. Several individuals are also named as defendants.
Alleged Illegal Actions: Publishing, Passing Resolutions, Speaking to the Press
Smithfield's court complaint uses the word "extort" 73 times. What Smithfield is really complaining about is that they're feeling pressure to treat its workers better and recognize the union.
Here are just a few of the "unlawful" tactics alleged by Smithfield against the defendants. As humorist Dave Barry would say, "I am not making this up". You can read the entire complaint here.
- "Publication and Use of Research Associates of America Report" (RAA is a consultant hired by UFCW. Isn't "publication" protected by the First Amendment?);
- "Sponsorship and Participation in the Passage of Public Condemnations of Smithfield By Cities, Townships and Organizations" (Translation: contacting elected officials and churches, asking them to pass resolutions critical of Smithfield);
- A defendant "delivered the following threatening statement to Smithfield through the press: 'We’ve come here to send a message to Smithfield Foods while their board of directors and top executives gather to talk about their success and growth of the multibillion-dollar company. We want to remind them that there are people suffering every day in the largest meatpacking plant in the world.'"
Unfortunately for Smithfield, these kinds of things are protected by the First Amendment.
It's even more unfortunate for Smithfield's investors, who will probably have to pick up the tab for the fancy lawyers at Hunton & Williams who wrote the 94-page complaint filled with stuff like this.
The defendants' activities are also protected by the National Labor Relations Act. Section 8(b)4 of that Act states, "nothing contained in such paragraph shall be construed to prohibit publicity, other than picketing, for the purpose of truthfully advising the public, including consumers and members of a labor organization, that a product or products are produced by an employer with whom the labor organization has a primary dispute ...". The full text of the NLRA is here.
Smithfield's lawsuit falls under the definition of a SLAPP suit. "SLAPP" is an acronym for "Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation". Here, here, and here are discussions of the topic. Basically, SLAPP suits are frivolous lawsuits filed by corporations, used to silence or intimidate individuals and community groups.
The Pot Calls The Kettle Black
Smithfield is hardly in a position to be accusing others of wrongdoing. Their own activities are, to put it politely, often at variance with the law. You can read about Smithfield's long history of abuse and illegality here.
What Can I Do to Help?
This holiday season, be sure to boycott products made by Smithfield Foods, especially those that come from their plant in Tar Heel, North Carolina.
Bacon from the Tar Heel plant has the product code EST 79C. Other products from the Tar Heel plant have the code EST 18079.
Among the products made by Smithfield are:
Smithfield Lean Generation Pork, Tender 'n Easy, Smithfield Self Basting, Lykes, Sunnyland, Jamestown, Gwaltney, Great, Valleydale, Esskay, Reelfoot, Smithfield Ham & Products and Stadler Country Hams. A longer list is here.
If your local store is carrying Smithfield products, ask them to stop!
What Else Can I Do?
- Become informed. Read all about the Justice at Smithfield campaign here.
- Contact Smithfield Foods at "information@smithfieldfoods.com". Tell them what you think.
- Contact Smithfield's Investor Relations department at "ir@smithfieldfoods.com". Ask them how much the investors are going to have to shell out for lawyers' fees for this obviously frivolous lawsuit.
- Support Jobs With Justice. The Smithfield project is just one example of the good work they do, building community support for workers. www.jwj.org.
A previous version of this was posted on Unbossed.
