JBS USA, the world’s largest meatpacking company and the biggest employer in Weld County, has announced a $50 billion expansion of the Greeley facility. The announcement comes just five months after The Wall Street Journal reported about poor living conditions for Haitian migrants working at the facility. The workers allege dangerous working conditions, human trafficking, wage theft, and unfair treatment. The facility currently employs 3,800 people.
The plant is expanding to increase efficiency and production capacity. The company statement said that “today’s announcement demonstrates our commitment to the U.S. beef industry and the American farmer and rancher. At JBS, we prioritize ongoing investments in our facilities to ensure our company and the rural areas where we live and work are positioned for success now and in the future.”
In 2019, JBS was accused of discharging water into a local stream and violating the Clean Water Act for five years. In 2020, the plant was accused of pressuring employees to work even when sick during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Six employees of the Greeley facility died from COVID-19. In 2021, the plant was cited for “repeated safety violations” by OSHA, including the death of one employee. In 2021, they paid a $5.5 million settlement for discrimination against Muslim, Somali and black employees. The company reportedly denied bathroom breaks and disciplined them harsher than other employees. In 2023, Packers Sanitation Services Inc. (PSSI) was fined $1.5 million for employing minors to work at different meatpacking plants, including four minors at the JBS plant in Greeley.
In September, Ebah Edmond, an employee who formerly worked at the Greeley plant, was accused of human trafficking immigrants after a video from a Haitian immigrant on TikTok went viral. Immigrants excited to relocate to the U.S. allegedly paid Edmond up to $17,000 for employment contracts, which is not a condition of employment to work at JBS, according to the UFCW union President Kim Cordova.
After the immigrants made it to northern Colorado, dozens of them were housed in a single room and they had to pay Edmond to get rides to the facility. “We also had reports of up to 30 to 50 people living in a room, sleeping on floors, with no hot water,” Cordova said. “It was a mess.”
Nicki Richardson, JBS USA’s head of communications, said the company investigated Edmond and found no evidence of wrongdoing. She added that he is not involved with recruiting and still works for the company at another Colorado facility.
“The company knew about these tactics,” Cordova said. “And, in fact, paid for workers to live in squalor conditions at a local motel, and turned a blind eye until they were questioned by the press. One of the main individuals involved in this terrible treatment is still employed by JBS.”
Gabe Evans, the U.S. representative for Colorado's 8th congressional district (which includes Weld County), celebrated the news. On the social media platform X, he wrote, “I’m thrilled to hear about JBSFoodsUSA’s expansion in Weld County. As an already vital piece of #CO08’s economy, their continued investment will create new jobs, enhance our beef industry, and help the local businesses that support the facility.”
