The 2021 Frito-Lay strike was a

labor strike Strike action, also called labor strike, labour strike in British English, or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became co ...

by employees at the

Topeka, Kansas Topeka ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Shawnee County. It is along the Kansas River in the central part of Shawnee County, in northeastern Kansas, in the Central United States. As of the 2020 cen ...

Frito-Lay Frito-Lay, Inc. (; ) is an American food company that manufactures, markets, and sells snack foods. It began in the early 1930s as two companies, Fritos, the Frito Company and Lay's, H.W. Lay & Company, that merged in 1961. Frito-Lay itself merg ...

plant against the company's mandatory overtime policy. The strike began on July 5, 2021 and ended on July 23, 2021.

Background

Frito-Lay has a contract with the Local 218 chapter of the

Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers' International Union The Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers International Union (BCTGM) is a trade union, labor union in the United States and Canada primarily representing workers in the food processing industry. The union was established in 188 ...

, which represents

. The warehouse employs approximately 700 to 800 workers, 600 of which are members of the BCTGM 218 chapter. Every two years, Frito-Lay and the BCTGM negotiate a contract for employee wages and conditions. The most recent contract negotiations fell through after workers rejected a contract that had been recommended by union leadership and a work stoppage and strike occurred in response.

Strike

The strike began on July 5, 2021, when approximately 600 members of the Local 218 chapter of the

(BCTGM) went on strike. According to a report by Mic and ''

Food & Wine ''Food & Wine'' is an American monthly magazine published by Dotdash Meredith. It was founded in 1978 by Ariane and Michael Batterberry. It features recipes, cooking tips, travel information, restaurant reviews, chefs, wine pairings and sea ...

'', this represented approximately 80 percent of the workforce at the Topeka, Kansas plant for Frito-Lay. It was the first time the Local 218 chapter of the BCTGM union went on strike since 1973. The reasons for the strike, per the union, were that employees were working as many as 12-hour days, up to 7 days a week under mandatory overtime, as well as shifts with an only eight-hour break between them, which employees often refer to as "suicide shifts". Wages had been stagnant for 15 years, and the new contract only promises a low merit-based increase of up to two percent. Some union members said that their wages had only increased 77 cents per hour in the last 12 years. The strike ended July 23 with the workers getting a contract with the company that guarantees one day off a week. The new contract does away with "suicide shifts", although mandatory overtime is still in effect.

Reactions

Frito-Lay

Frito-Lay denied any wrongdoing on their part, and claimed that the strike is a result of union leadership, stating that "union leadership is out of touch with the sentiments of Frito-Lay employees" and "we do not anticipate any further negotiations with the union for the foreseeable future. Frito-Lay will be focused on continuing to run the operations of our plant in Topeka and has a contingency plan in place to ensure employee safety. We will continue to be attentive to the situation and welcome any employees who wish to continue to work as they are legally entitled to do so."

Political organizations

The Kansas City chapter of the

Democratic Socialists of America The Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) is a political organization in the United States and the country's largest Socialism, socialist organization. Sitting on the Left-wing politics, left-wing to Far-left politics, far-left of the politic ...

expressed solidarity with the strike and provided fundraising for striking workers.

Other unions

Members from the

International Brotherhood of Teamsters The International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT) is a labor union in the United States and Canada. Formed in 1903 by the merger of the Team Drivers International Union and the Teamsters National Union, the union now represents a diverse members ...

and the

Industrial Workers of the World The Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), whose members are nicknamed "Wobblies", is an international labor union founded in Chicago, United States in 1905. The nickname's origin is uncertain. Its ideology combines general unionism with indu ...

picketed with BCTGM workers, and provided food and financial assistance. The Heartland IWW chapter, which represents Wobblies that live in the Kansas City area provided solidarity and fundraising during the contract negotiations with Frito-Lay and BCTGM during March 2021.

Impact

As a consequence of the strike, many grocery and convenience stores in the Kansas City metro area faced a chip shortage within 5 days of the strike.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Frito-Lay strike, 2021 Frito-Lay Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers' International Union Topeka, Kansas 2021 labor disputes and strikes Labor disputes in Kansas 2021 in Kansas History of Kansas Labor relations by company Strikes during the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States