Tortilleria El Milagro

El Milagro Locks Workers Out of Tortilla Factory After They Protest Unfair Treatment | Eater Chicago

"Workers staged a public walkout and march down 26th Street to the facility, delivered a written list of demands and requested a management response by September 29. During the protest 14 employees waited outside for about an hour and a half chanting “queremos trabajar!” before police escorted them back inside one by one to retrieve personal items; they were then barred from returning to the production line, an action organizers describe as an illegal lockout. Protesters — more than 60 people carrying picket signs — say the plant suffers from low pay, poor working conditions, low employee retention and sped-up machines that make jobs harder and potentially more dangerous. Many longtime workers left after a pandemic outbreak at the plant that infected roughly 85 employees and killed five, and workers say recent hiring practices (new hires being offered $16 an hour, equal to or higher than decades-long employees) have worsened tensions. Women at the facility allege sexual harassment that went unaddressed, and quality-control staff report a decline in tortilla quality since production speeds increased. Organizers from Arise Chicago are helping employees publicize these issues, and workers warn the community-reliant supply of tortillas is at risk if conditions don’t improve." - Aimee Levitt