3 Companies Continue Wage-Fix Fight

LINCOLN, Neb. (DTN) -- Three of the original 16 food companies sued for allegedly conspiring to keep employee wages low continue to fight the allegations in court, as a federal court considers several new settlements reached in the case filed in 2022.

As of June 13, 2025, Smithfield Foods, Agri Stats Inc. and Greater Omaha Packing Co., Inc. have not reached settlements, according to court documents filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado.

The employee plaintiffs in the case asked the court last month to grant preliminary approval of settlements with Agri Beef Co., Washington Beef, LLC, and Indiana Packers Corporation. Those include a combined $1.4 million settlement with Agri Beef and Washington Beef, as well as a $1.1 million settlement with Indiana Packers.

Total settlements in the case now exceed $202.7 million from 12 defendant families, according to court records.

Previous settlements include $72.5 million with Tyson Foods, $55 million with JBS, Cargill at $29.8 million, National Beef at $14.2 million and Hormel Foods-QPP, $13.5 million.

Notices are expected to be sent to class members starting on Oct. 13, 2025, according to court documents. Class members will have until March 11, 2026, either to request exclusion or object to settlements. A final approval hearing is expected to take place around May 2026, with funds distribution beginning in October 2026.

In an answer to an amended complaint filed by Smithfield in May 2025, the company continues to categorically deny the existence of a conspiracy to suppress wages.

The company also makes many other legal points including the employee claims are barred by the statute of limitations, there were no injury to the plaintiffs, that imposing liability to Smithfield would violate the company's constitutional rights, among other things.

Agri States and Greater Omaha Packing made similar arguments in their responses to an amended complaint.

The ongoing lawsuit potentially affects about 150,000 workers per year from 2014 to the present.

The original lawsuit alleged that since at least 2014 the companies "conspired and combined to fix and depress" compensation to employees at about 140 red meat processing plants across the country, in violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act. The companies named in the lawsuit produce about 80% of all red meat sold to U.S. consumers.

The lawsuit said senior executives at the companies established and approved hourly wage rates, annual salaries and employment benefits.

The complaint said the companies conducted "secret" compensation surveys and held "secret" annual meetings that included executives from the companies named in the lawsuit.

"The purpose, intent and outcome of these annual red meat industry compensation meetings was to depress and fix the wages, salaries and benefits of class members at artificially depressed levels," the complaint alleged.

In addition, the lawsuit said the companies were in direct communication with senior executives who "extensively discussed, compared, and in turn, further suppressed compensation through email and phone communications."

The complaint said the companies entered into no-poach agreements, preventing the companies from recruiting the other companies' employees.

Read more on DTN:

"Companies Seek Wage-Fixing Case Exit," https://www.dtnpf.com/…

"Tyson, JBS Settle on Wage-Fixing Case," https://www.dtnpf.com/…

Todd Neeley can be reached at todd.neeley@dtn.com

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