A Little Background

When Burmese refugees, mostly Chin and Karen, resettled in this area some years ago, work was pretty easy to find. A few folks found work in Chinese restaurants or sushi bars, but most people found jobs in the local auto parts factories. Families started out in apartments, but quite a few were able to buy their own homes.
A year and a half ago or so, newcomers started finding it difficult to get those factory jobs. The newcomers didn't speak much English, if any, and the factories (mostly Japanese owned) wanted a more skilled workforce. And then the economic meltdown hit and the factories started laying off.
So one of the leaders in the community, a Baptist pastor, set out to find new job opportunities for his flock. What he found was a meatpacking plant about an hour's drive away. It's gone by different names over the years, Murco, Packerland, Smithfield, JBS, but the place remains pretty much the same even as the owners change. A dangerous, bloody place to work.
The pastor started out there too, as an interpreter, but quit after he saw the working conditions, the injuries, and the callous treatment from the bosses.
Because this is the only employment available for most of the Burmese, they are of course loathe to complain, either formally or informally. As they tell me over and over, "We have no choice!"
When I visit them in their homes to do their immigration paperwork, I see their hands that are swollen double their size or that cannot close into a fist or that have a broken finger. The man whose hands are pictured above this post was unable to pick up a paper clip.
All the meatpacking Burmese have legal status, by the way. Refugees are give permission to work right away when they enter the U.S. and can file for their green card after one year has passed. This makes them attractive to JBS, which in its previous incarnations often was in trouble with the government for hiring undocumented workers.
I came up with the idea for this blog, so I can post pictures of injuries and chronicle my efforts to work with the community to make their situation better.
Anyone who wants to share photos of meatpacking injuries (no faces, please, unless it's you and you don't care), please leave a comment with your email address.