Federal mediator brought in to resolve strike at Cedar Rapids Cargill plant

CEDAR RAPIDS — A federal mediator hopes to bring striking workers at Cargill’s corn milling plant in Cedar Rapids and company representatives back to the negotiating table, according to a union representative.

Sami Scheetz, an organizer with Teamsters Local 238 and a Democratic state representative from Cedar Rapids, told The Gazette union representatives and a bargaining committee of striking workers are scheduled to meet Wednesday afternoon with a mediator in hopes of reaching a tentative agreement.

A Cargill spokesperson did not immediately respond to messages Tuesday seeking comment.

The company, in a statement last week, said it “proposed a fair and competitive package for our employees and are disappointed that we could not come to an agreement with the Union at this time.”

Cargill said it was “willing and ready to meet with the union at their request,” and that company officials “remain optimistic that an agreement can be reached in the near future.”

“In the interim, we continue the supply of high-quality products to our customers,” the company’s statement reads.

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Employees say they want fair wages, ‘respect’ from company

Ten striking workers picketed outside the employee entrance to the Cargill plant late Tuesday morning, where work continued. Striking workers and Scott Punteney, business agent for Teamsters Local 238, said the company has brought in operators from other Cargill facilities since the work stoppage started last week.

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Nearly 100 workers at Cargill’s corn milling plant near the Cedar River on 16th Street SE went on strike Oct. 1, aiming to secure a reasonable wage offer from Cargill after the local Teamsters union voted to decline the company's latest offer. The collective bargaining agreement between the 93 Cedar Rapids employees and the Minnesota-based crop trader and food maker expired early that day at midnight.

Teamsters Local 238 has scheduled a rally for Thursday afternoon to support striking workers, who say they’re asking for fair compensation that reflects industry standards and the rising cost of living.

Punteney said Cargill returned with an offer that was $1.80 per hour lower than the union was requesting. The union argues that the plant's wages are significantly behind industry standards, with Cargill workers earning less per hour than other local plants’ workers.

Punteney said the Cedar Rapids workers are paid at least $2.50 less per hour than those at other Cargill plants, and wages substantially lag behind companies like Quaker Oats and General Mills.

He said the company was unwilling to make a fair market adjustment for this group of workers, as it has done with other contracts negotiated at other facilities, including in just the past few months.

Punteney said the current median wage for operators at the Cedar Rapids corn milling plant is just under $30 an hour, or about $62,400 annually before taxes for an employee working 52 weeks of the year and 40 hours per week.

“All these other units got market adjustments, which is common with inflation and the workers shortages that occurred during the pandemic,” Punteney said. “It’s all about respect. These guys worked their tails off during the pandemic to make this company highly profitable. They had four years of some of their biggest profits ever before this current year. … If they don’t catch up now, (workers) are going to be further and further behind.

“We are hopeful the negotiations continue in the right direction, and we can reach a tentative agreement our membership can vote on and approve.”

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Cargill, one of the largest privately owned companies in the world, reported $160 billion in revenues in its 2024 annual report released in August, a $17 billion drop from the previous year. It was the first time the company's revenue had declined since 2019, and the largest drop in a decade. Cargill Chief Executive Officer Brian Sikes wrote in a letter to stakeholders that “the marketplace our people navigated this year was extremely challenging.”

The U.S. agricultural market is facing a downturn, with the U.S. Department of Agriculture forecasting a decrease in net farm income for 2024. Cash receipts from the sale of agricultural commodities are forecast to decrease by $9.8 billion (1.9 percent) from 2023 to $516.5 billion in 2024. Total cash receipts from crop sales are expected to decrease by $27.7 billion (10 percent) from 2023, led by lower corn and soybean prices.

Cargill workers prepared for prolonged strike

Among those workers who manned the picket line Tuesday in front of the Cargill plant gate was Mike Lindstrom, a plant operator from Marion who has worked for Cargill for 16 years. Lindstrom said workers are striking for better pay and respect, feeling undervalued compared to other local businesses.

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He said workers have been falling behind in wage adjustments over the past few contracts, as Cargill has had four profitable years without significant wage increases.

“The problem is that's been their excuse every contract, even when they were having a record year,” Lindstrom said. “This facility has always performed nine times out of 10. We're well over the 90 percentile when it comes to production, when it comes to quality.”

He said the union seeks fair treatment and acknowledgment of their hard work and dedication. Lindstrom described demanding work conditions, including a seven-day workweek and regular holidays worked.

He said the facility is often used as an example of safety within Cargill, yet employees — many who have been with the company for more than a decade — feel unappreciated.

Lindstrom said workers are not seeking riches, but merely trying to keep up with the rising cost of living, making Cargill’s last offer “offensively low.”

He said union members are willing to return to the negotiating table, but will stay on strike as long as necessary to secure fair wages.

“I mean, we'd like to see it handled sooner rather than later, but we know this could take months,” Lindstrom said, noting a 2022 strike by Ingredion workers in Cedar Rapids lasted nearly six-months.

“Obviously, nobody wants that. But if that's what it takes, that's what it takes,” Lindstrom said, adding the financial strain of the strike could lead to finding another job before a resolution is reached.

Mill operator Brad Eveland of Cedar Rapids echoed Lindstrom.

“The company and us as operators in our union, we're not horribly far apart. But the offer that they gave us last week was not where it needs to be for a company that's as big as Cargill and as successful as Cargill, and as good as they've had it the last few years,” Eveland said. “ … I'm hopeful that our union and the company can come together, get a little bit closer” on a new contract.

Comments: (319) 398-8499; tom.barton@thegazette.com