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Agriprocessors walkout

By Ben Harris · August 20, 2008

News out of Postville today was that kosher supervisors at Agriprocessors, upset by fewer shifts and reduced pay, had staged a walkout. Though we were unable to get in touch with any supervisors, the company has more or less confirmed the essential details of the story. Our brief on the subject is here.

What's clear from this episode is that more than three months after the massive federal immigration raid on May 12, Agriprocessors is still well below its previous production levels, so much so that there isn't enough work for the supervisors. What's less clear is whether the company is having such significant cash flow problems that it is behind in payments to the supervisors. This isn't entirely implausible, given that the company is not only facing much decreased revenues but also increased labor and legal costs. Agri has had to up its hourly wage to attract new workers and the staffing companies they have hired are surely taking a nice cut as well.

Here's company spokesman Menachem Lubinsky's explanation of what went down today:

It is no secret that Agriprocessors was forced to cut back production of meat and poultry after more than 1/3 of its labor force was seized in a May 12th raid by ICE. While the company has made big strides in hiring new workers and restoring production, it is still significantly behind May 12th levels. For the kosher slaughterers (shochtim) and rabbis, this has meant not being able to work multiple shifts and a 6-day work week, cutting into their ability to make more money, while also making do with the company's policy of a lag time in their paychecks. This morning, the rabbis staged a brief 30 minute walk-out to air their grievances. After quick negotiations with Heshy Rubashkin and Rabbi Weissmandl [the chief supervising rabbi], they were satisfied with management's response and returned to work. The rabbis are, of course, hoping for a resumption of pre-May 12th production, which would again offer them the opportunities they had before. Agriprocessors is committed to make every effort to restore full production so that the rabbis can again enjoy the working conditions that attracted them to Postville in the first place.

0 Comments | Share This | Agriprocessors, Kashrut |

Parsing the Russian-Georgian conflict

By Lisa Hostein · August 20, 2008

JTA's Grant Slater, on the ground in Georgia, talks to JTA Senior Editor Lisa Hostein about the conflict, the Jewish rescue and relief effort and the debate over who's responsible for the current mess.

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To subscribe to JTA's Behind the News podcast, click here.

0 Comments | Share This | Georgia, Podcast, Russia |

Show me the money!!

By Ben Harris · August 20, 2008

I asked Rabby Fully Eisenberger, one of the sources for my story yesterday about paying Jewish students to study Torah, for a photo to go along with the piece.

He sent us this one.

Not sure exactly what this is intended to illustrate – perhaps Plan B if the $500 dollar incentive isn't enough?

On a related (and slightly more serious) note, the New York Times reports today on a city program to reward students with cash who score well on advanced placement exams. The program, which is privately financed and runs in 31 schools, pays out $1,000 to students who score a 5 on the exam (the highest mark possible), $750 for a 4, and $500 for a 3.

Not bad. But as the Times points out, the number who passed the exam actually declined in the year the program has been running, even though 345 more tests were taken in 2008.

I bring the story up because it was mentioned in my conversation with Randy Cohen, the resident ethicist at the Times. Cohen's point was that financial incentives in education are fairly common. The question is not whether they're ethical – which Cohen says they are – but whether they work.

Fair enough, but it's also worth noting the New York program is trying to incentivize excellence, while the programs described in my story are just trying to get people to show up. The lesson of the New York program may be students will sit through a class for $500, but that doesn't mean they actually absorb anything.

2 Comments | Share This | Religion |

How Israel wins

By Alison Klayman · August 20, 2008

Not surprisingly, Israel's first medal of the Beijing Olympics was not won in Beijing, but rather in Qingdao, where the Sailing competition is being held.

In recent days, many Israelis in China have flocked to Qingdao in hopes of seeing better results than they had in Beijing.

Shahar Zubari was able to clinch the bronze after finishing second in the the RS:X (Windsurfer) medal race on Wednesday, August 20. China was so excited for Israel, the official Xinhua news service even wrote a story about Olmert calling to congratulate Zubari.

After Uriel Heilman posted a list about Top Ten excuses from Israeli Olympians for not winning, I thought it was appropriate to see the way that Israeli Olympians talk after they win.

Quotes from bronze medalist Shahar Zubari from the Olympic News Service:

""I feel so happy. I'm only 20 and I feel like a superstar, with all the media paying attention to me. I even painted my nails especially for this event."

(At least his parents are trying to keep his feet on the ground, according to this Haaretz profile, where his mother Vered says, "It has always been and continues to be important to us to not let success get to his head.")

As for his Wednesday night celebration plans:

"I'm going to get drunk."

2 Comments | Share This | Beijing Olympics, Sports |