This week, the final vote by Hormel workers in Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Georgia was cast with members of United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Local 6 (Algona, Iowa), Local 9 (Austin, Minnesota), Local 1473 (Beloit, Wisconsin), and Local 1996 (Atlanta, Georgia) overwhelmingly approving the new contract.

The democratic process for contract negotiations requires members of all four UFCW Local Unions to vote on whether or not to accept the terms of the agreement before contracts are official. The new contract strengthens wages, protects and expands healthcare, and protects and increases pensions for Hormel workers across the country.

The presidents of UFCW Locals 6, 9, 1473, and 1996 released the following statement: “By strongly voting for a new contract that improves wages and benefits, thousands of our hard working members sent a powerful message this week about the power that comes from workers standing together. This contract not only rewards hard work, it provides affordable healthcare, strong pensions, and critical benefits that ensure our UFCW members are able to build the better life they’ve earned. For millions of Americans, this contract ensures that they can continue to count on our members for the high-quality Hormel products they feed their families every day.”

The new contracts achieve the following:

• All workers will continue to have access to affordable and quality healthcare;
• All pensions were protected and increased; and
• All workers will see increases in wages.