Source: Rita Jane Gabbett, MEATINGPLACE, 2/17/17

An organized “Day Without Immigrants” protest that encouraged immigrants to stay home from work on Thursday to protest the Trump administration’s immigration policies did impact some meat processing plant operations, though most appeared to be operating with only minor disruption.

“All of our protein plants in the U.S. are running today. The impact has been minimal,” Cargill spokesman Mike Martin told Meatingplace on Thursday afternoon.

Similarly, Tyson Foods spokeswoman Caroline Ahn told Meatingplace, “Absentee levels at some locations are higher than normal. However, all of our plants are operating today.”

Some plant operations were slowed, however.

"Today, some employees are choosing not to work as a form of protest of new immigration policies being implemented in the United States. Others have been unable to report to work because, for example, their child care providers are not working," said North American Meat Institute President and CEO Barry Carpenter in a statement. "As a result, we have heard some reports of higher than normal absenteeism at some member plants, in some cases slowing production and causing plants to modify operations."

“We know that immigration reform and current actions in Washington D.C. are topics that are on everyone's mind,” acknowledged a Hormel Foods statement emailed to Meatingplace on Thursday afternoon. “We don't anticipate any business interruption and are confident that the teams at our locations will continue to focus on the world-class operations of our facilities.” 

Media reports listed several types of business closures, largely in urban areas, and including grocery stores and restaurants from fast food to fine dining. Celebrity chef Rick Bayless, famous for popularizing the complex flavors of Mexico's cuisine, closed four Chicago restaurants for the day out of respect for his staff, according to National Public Radio. 

The Pentagon warned employees that a number of its food concessions, including Sbarro’s, Starbucks and Taco Bell, were closed because immigrant employees had stayed home and employees could expect longer lines at restaurants that were open, according to the New York Times.

"We respect the rights of our employees to express themselves," said Carpenter, noting that the meat industry has long supported comprehensive immigration reform. "We will continue to advocate policies that maintain the safety and security of our nation and our people, whether they were born here or not. We hope that going forward, we can collaborate with our employees on strategies that minimize business disruptions. Maintaining a healthy business and reliable production flow is good for all of us. We’re in this together.” 

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