Some locals blamed Tyson, commenting on theWeb site of the Shelbyville Times-Gazette that the company receives asubsidy for hiring foreign workers. (The company says this isn’t true.)The Times-Gazette itself faulted Washington. In an editorial, the paperargued that the government gives foreign-born applicants an unfair edgebecause it gives taxpayer dollars to nonprofit organizations that helpsettle refugees — including groups that bused refugees to town toapply for jobs.
SHELBYVILLE,Tenn. — Hard times recently drew scores of locals and immigrants to acold sidewalk in this town, where they spent an anxious night waitingto compete for jobs in a slaughterhouse.
Burmese refugee Cho Aye traveled 60 miles from Nashville on aThursday morning in late March to take a place at the head of the lineoutside Shelbyville’s state employment office. The next day, the officewas to take applications for $9.35-an-hour jobs processing chicken atthe local Tyson Foodsplant. Directly behind Ms. Aye, sitting on blankets atop the concrete,were 16 more Burmese refugees who had come from as far away as Idahoand Florida“I don’t mind doing any kind of work,” Ms. Aye, a petite 22-year-old,said that evening as she settled into a reclining beach chair shebought at Goodwill.
Farther back in the line, marked by orange tape and monitored bypolice, locals like David Curtis seethed. “This is the worst job I haveever applied for,” said the 31-year-old welder, who had already failedto find work at a convenience store, a pen factory and a Pizza Hut.Eyeing those ahead of him, he added: “I’m very annoyed foreigners aretaking jobs that Americans need.”
Slaughterhouse jobs can be difficult and dangerous. Now, with U.S.unemployment at a 25-year high, they are also fiercely coveted.American workers — who for years have largely avoided fruit-picking,office-cleaning and meat-processing shifts — are increasingly vying forthese jobs with immigrants, creating flashpoints in places likeShelbyville.
Shoving and Cursing
The rising friction has been on display at the employment centerhere. When Tyson put out an earlier call for applications, in February,shoving and cursing broke out between locals and immigrants jockeyingfor position at the head of the line. With too few jobs to go around,outraged locals demanded that the work go to residents, not immigrantworkers from outside Shelbyville.