GREELEY, Colo. (AP) — About 3,800 workers at one of the nation's largest meatpacking plants were set to strike Monday morning in Colorado in what union representatives said would be the first walkout at a U.S. beef slaughterhouse since the 1980s.
The strike at the Swift Beef Co. plant in Greeley was set to begin at 5:30 a.m. MDT, said Kim Cordova, president of United Food and Commercial Workers Local 7, which represents the workers.
It follows accusations from union officials that owner JBS USA retaliated against workers and committed other unfair labor practices amid contract negotiations. A previous contract was due to expire at midnight Sunday.
The expected strike comes at a 75-year low for the U.S. cattle population, with a Jan. 1 inventory of 86.2 million animals -- down 1% from the prior year. Beef prices have added to economic anxiety in the U.S., while the administration of President Donald Trump has turned to a trade deal with Argentina in efforts to lower prices for food, including beef.
It also follows the January closure of a meatpacking plant in Lexington, Nebraska, which was expected to ripple through the local economy and community.
At the Greeley plant, the company tried to intimidate workers to quit the union in one-on-one meetings, union general counsel Matt Shechter said.
Cordova said 99% of workers voted to authorize the strike. No formal negotiations took place over the weekend after the company refused a union request to negotiate on Saturday, Shechter said.
JBS USA said in statement that any employee who didn’t want to strike would have work and be paid. The company said it would operate two shifts at the plant Monday and would temporarily move production as needed to other JBS facilities.
The statement said the company operates in full compliance with federal and state labor and employment laws.
“Our goal is to minimize impact to our customers, our partners, and the broader marketplace while we work toward a fair resolution in Greeley,” the company said.
It's the first strike at a U.S. slaughterhouse since workers walked out at a Hormel plant in Minnesota in 1985, Cordova said. That strike lasted more than a year and included violent confrontations between police and protesters, according to the Minnesota Historical Society.
FILE - Employees walk in front of the entrance to the JBS meat processing plant, July 23, 2021, in Greeley, Colo. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)
ST. ANDREWS, Scotland--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Mar 16, 2026--
The R&A and Accenture (NYSE:ACN) today announced a new six-year partnership which will see Accenture become the Official Business and Technology Consulting Partner of The R&A as well as an Official Patron of some of golf’s most iconic championships—The Open, AIG Women’s Open, and ISPS HANDA Senior Open until 2031.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260316147526/en/
As the Official Business and Technology Consulting Partner of The R&A, Accenture will provide business transformation and management consulting services to support its strategic priorities across governance, championships and development of the sport by harnessing deep expertise in digital, cloud, data and artificial intelligence. The partnership will accelerate the use of technology in golf - enhancing insights, operations, and fan and player experiences - to help open the game to more people, in more places, around the world.
Mark Darbon, Chief Executive of The R&A, said: “Accenture has a renowned reputation worldwide for its expertise in technology, data and innovation and we see this partnership as a valuable opportunity to support our strategic priorities in golf and help shape the future of the sport.
“As both an Official Patron of our major championships and our Official Business and Technology Consulting Partner, Accenture will work closely with us to help modernize how we govern and deliver the game, while sharing our ambition to inspire people through world-class championships and showcase golf as a sport for everyone to enjoy.”
Through the partnership, Accenture will provide consultancy support to help modernize how the sport is governed, delivered and experienced, building on its track record of working with major global sports organizations to drive innovation at scale.
Mauro Macchi, CEO of Accenture in EMEA, said: “Golf is one of the world’s great global sports, with a rich history and an exciting future. We’re proud to partner with The R&A as its Official Business and Technology Consulting Partner, as well as an Official Patron of its most iconic championships.
“Together, we will apply technology, data, and AI to help open the game to an even wider audience - strengthening the sport’s foundations, enhancing experiences on and off the course, and supporting The R&A’s mission to grow and evolve golf for generations to come.”
Accenture will also collaborate with The R&A to activate its Patron status across The Open, AIG Women’s Open, and ISPS HANDA Senior Open, supporting the storytelling, heritage and global reach of golf’s most prestigious championships.
About Accenture
Accenture is a leading solutions and services company that helps the world’s leading enterprises reinvent by building their digital core and unleashing the power of AI to create value at speed across the enterprise, bringing together the talent of our approximately 784,000 people, our proprietary assets and platforms, and deep ecosystem relationships. Our strategy is to be the reinvention partner of choice for our clients and to be the most client-focused, AI-enabled, great place to work in the world. Through our Reinvention Services we bring together our capabilities across strategy, consulting, technology, operations, Song and Industry X with our deep industry expertise to create and deliver solutions and services for our clients. Our purpose is to deliver on the promise of technology and human ingenuity, and we measure our success by the 360° value we create for all our stakeholders. Visit us at accenture.com.
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The R&A and Accenture today announced a new six-year partnership which will see Accenture become the Official Business and Technology Consulting Partner of The R&A as well as an Official Patron of some of golf’s most iconic championships—The Open, AIG Women’s Open, and ISPS HANDA Senior Open until 2031.
