Source:  MEATINGPLACE.COM, 3/31/11

A federal judge in Omaha has granted class-action status for a lawsuit filed by workers at two Tyson Foods plants in Nebraska seeking wages for activities before and after they begin work on the assembly line.

The workers at the Tyson plants in Madison and Dakota City contend they are being paid only for work on the assembly line, not for time spent changing into and out of uniforms and safety equipment, sanitizing their work tools, sharpening knives and other work-related duties.

The change in status may ultimately involve at least 2,000 workers in Madison and 3,100 workers in Dakota City, according to the Associated Press.

Tyson believes the workers were compensated fairly, according to court filings. The judge did not set a date for the trial to begin.

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