As new, more advanced methods to store meat were invented, such as refrigeration, and as the railroads began to crisscross the country, the meat packing market in the United States sprang to life. With the popularization of railroads as a means of transportation, meat delivery and shipping became easier and quicker and refrigeration strategies permitted the meat to stay fresher for much longer.
Even though meat packing plants had been in existence for many years, it was not till the novel The Jungle by author Upton Sinclair was printed in 1906 that many became aware of the techniques of the meat packing industry, "The Jungle," an incomparable book about the abominable working circumstances of the meat packers and unsafe, dirty approaches used to accelerate development, alarmed numerous readers around the nation. Employees were pushed to work in harsh, unsanitary conditions. Strikes and unions were stifled as employers hired newly arrived immigrants to occupy the slots of those who protested these conditions.
Thankfully, by the 1930's and well into the 1940's, the United Packinghouse Workers of America of the CIO was created for the purpose of unionizing workers and enhancing the working conditions and approaches in meat packinghouses. Through this labor union and others, meat packers had the ability to generate more in wages and were authorized to work in more tolerable conditions for more reasonable shifts.
As the usage of technology heightened, countless workers were replaced for machinery and various mechanized hardware. With the popularization of trucks, shipping was transferred from a railroad system to a trucking system and several meat packing industries were relocated from the cities to rural areas. This brought the factories closer to the pastures and ranches that bred the cattle used for the meat packing. As a result, labor unionization was less centralized and many workers lost employment. Even though popular meat packing cities like St. Louis, Illinois, Kansas City, Missouri, Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and St. Paul, Minnesota still preserved meat packing production, other cities like Omaha and Chicago closed their meat packing factories and stockyards.
Lately, an increase in on the job damage in meat packing factories has been drawing the attention of some. Many investigations have been launched in an effort to discover and reduce any poor or dangerous working conditions that still exist or that have newly presented themselves. Though popular meat packing companies of the United States, like Cargill Meat Solutions, Lomen Company, Hormel Foods, Tyson Foods, and Perdue Farms are still successfully operating, it is yet to be determined whether the industry of meat packing itself is a safe, sanitary, healthy occupational provider. The meat packing industry is yet to be thoroughly investigated and more factual evidence is yet to be found.
Even though meat packing plants had been in existence for many years, it was not till the novel The Jungle by author Upton Sinclair was printed in 1906 that many became aware of the techniques of the meat packing industry, "The Jungle," an incomparable book about the abominable working circumstances of the meat packers and unsafe, dirty approaches used to accelerate development, alarmed numerous readers around the nation. Employees were pushed to work in harsh, unsanitary conditions. Strikes and unions were stifled as employers hired newly arrived immigrants to occupy the slots of those who protested these conditions.
Thankfully, by the 1930's and well into the 1940's, the United Packinghouse Workers of America of the CIO was created for the purpose of unionizing workers and enhancing the working conditions and approaches in meat packinghouses. Through this labor union and others, meat packers had the ability to generate more in wages and were authorized to work in more tolerable conditions for more reasonable shifts.
As the usage of technology heightened, countless workers were replaced for machinery and various mechanized hardware. With the popularization of trucks, shipping was transferred from a railroad system to a trucking system and several meat packing industries were relocated from the cities to rural areas. This brought the factories closer to the pastures and ranches that bred the cattle used for the meat packing. As a result, labor unionization was less centralized and many workers lost employment. Even though popular meat packing cities like St. Louis, Illinois, Kansas City, Missouri, Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and St. Paul, Minnesota still preserved meat packing production, other cities like Omaha and Chicago closed their meat packing factories and stockyards.
Lately, an increase in on the job damage in meat packing factories has been drawing the attention of some. Many investigations have been launched in an effort to discover and reduce any poor or dangerous working conditions that still exist or that have newly presented themselves. Though popular meat packing companies of the United States, like Cargill Meat Solutions, Lomen Company, Hormel Foods, Tyson Foods, and Perdue Farms are still successfully operating, it is yet to be determined whether the industry of meat packing itself is a safe, sanitary, healthy occupational provider. The meat packing industry is yet to be thoroughly investigated and more factual evidence is yet to be found.
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