Turkey Factory Abused Disabled Workers for 20 Years

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.care2.com/causes/disabled-workers-win-hugevictory-against-turkey-company.html

Turkey Factory Abused Disabled Workers for 20 Years

by Kristina Chew May 10, 2013 2:30 pm

For more than 20 years, 32 men with intellectual disabilities who worked in an Iowa plant eviscerating turkeys were subjected to both verbal and physical harassment, housed in substandard facilities and denied medical care. From 2007 – 2009, they also endured “severe abuse and discrimination,” including being paid a total of $65 a month when they should have received an average of $11 – $12 an hour.

In a “historic verdict” last week, a Davenport, Iowa jury awarded the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) damages totaling $240 million (the largest verdict in the agency’s history) for disability discrimination and severe abuse. Each of the men was awarded $2 million in punitive damages and $5.5 million in compensatory damages.

The decision follows a September 2012 order in which a district court judge ruled that Henry’s Turkey must pay the men $1.3 million for “unlawful disability-based wage discrimination.”

Henry’s Turkey is based in Goldthwaite, Texas; the 32 men (who were in their 40s, 50s and 60s) worked at plants in West Liberty and Atalissa, Iowa. The conditions the men endured, and for so long, are unbelievable. They were frequently referred to as “retarded,” “dumb ass” and “stupid.” Their freedom of movement was restricted and they were not able to access medical care or to have cellphones. Supervisors were “often dismissive” when the men said they were in pain or had been injured. They were hit, kicked, sometimes handcuffed to their beds and made to carry heavy weights as punishments. They were housed in a 1oo-year-old schoolhouse infested with insects and rodents with inadequate heating and leaky roof; a fire marshal has since shut it down.

FULL story at link.

[factsarenotfair]

1. But the state of Iowa is not going to press any criminal charges.

State of Iowa won’t file charges in turkey plant worker case
Officials say civil penalties already imposed should serve as deterrent

Officials from Muscatine County and the Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation huddle near property used by Henry's Turkey Service in Atalissa in February 2009. (AP Photo/The Des Moines Register, Harry Baumert)

Iowa won’t pursue criminal charges against a Texas company that’s accused of exploiting developmentally disabled workers at a turkey plant in eastern Iowa.

According to The Des Moines Register, the Iowa Attorney General’s Office says the civil penalties that other agencies have obtained against Henry’s Turkey Service and its owners will hold the company accountable and serve as a deterrent.
...
http://thegazette.com/2011/09/26/state-of-iowa-wont-file-charges-in-turkey-plant-worker-case/

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

2. People really suck sometimes, y'know?