As was first reported (HERE) by YWN, a group of more than twenty Orthodox Rabbinical leaders were scheduled to visit the Agriprocessors plant in Postville, Iowa. Below is a report of that visit as written by Aaron Troodler (one of the participants in the mission representing the National Council of Young Israel):

A group of more than twenty Orthodox Jewish rabbinical leaders representing several major Jewish organizations and large Jewish communities visited the Agriprocessors plant in Postville, Iowa on July 31st.  Agriprocessors is the largest kosher meat and poultry plant in the United States.  The mission, which was spearheaded by Rabbi Pesach Lerner, the Executive Vice President of the National Council of Young Israel, was meant to provide the Jewish leaders with a first-hand account of the state of the Agriprocessors plant and the impact that recent developments have had on the Postville community. It is believed that the delegation of Rabbis that visited the plant last week was the first delegation to be inside the plant since the May 2008 raid that was carried out by federal immigration agents.

“We have all heard many media reports coming out of Postville which relate to the Agriprocessors plant,” said Rabbi Lerner, “We wanted to see first-hand the status of the facility’s equipment and machinery, examine the working conditions at the plant, and observe how the employees are being treated.”

The Rabbis flew into airports in a number of cities throughout the Midwest, including Madison, Wisconsin, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, and Dubuque, Iowa.  As there is no airport near Postville, the Rabbis traveled anywhere between two and five hours in cars and busses from their respective airports to reach Postville.  Following the mission, the Rabbis’ journey was no less tiring with several more hours spent in cars and busses, and numerous flight delays which delayed their return, with most of the Rabbis arriving home after midnight on Thursday night.

The Rabbis began the day by touring the plant.  Before embarking on the tour, everyone was required to don a hard hat, hair and beard nets, and a white coat to wear over their clothing, all of which was intended to provide the visitors with a level of safety and to maintain a high level of cleanliness at the plant.  The visitors were required to adhere to the same safety and hygienic standards that are required of all workers at the facility.

Shortly after beginning the tour, which was led by managers at the plant, word came of a tornado sighting in the area, which briefly put the tour on hold.  Soon thereafter, there was a weather-related power outage at the plant.  During that time, the Rabbis waited in the plant’s lunchroom, where many of the workers at the plant were there on break.  The participants conversed with the workers, both in English and Spanish, and inquired about the working conditions at the plant, including salaries, working hours, and benefits.

Every worker who spoke with the Rabbis expressed a degree of satisfaction with how much they were being paid and the hours which they worked.  Some of the workers noted that the working conditions and the hourly wages that they were being paid at the Agriprocessors plant were a stark improvement over conditions they faced in other meat and poultry plants that they had worked at in the past.  Others spoke about the opportunity for advancement that they had at Agriprocessors, which were not available in other meat plants.  A reporter for the Five Towns Jewish Times filmed dozens of interviews with randomly selected employees in English and Spanish.  Those interviews will be made available shortly on the Internet via You Tube.

After the power was restored, the Rabbis spent time touring the plant, during which time they observed the working conditions in various parts of the facility and spoke with employees to get their perspective about working conditions at the plant.  Although several of the plant’s managers were leading the tour, the participants were free to separate from the group and to walk around unimpeded if they so desired.  Many of the visitors did break away from the tour and spent a great deal of time speaking to the workers and visiting different areas of the plant unannounced.

The Rabbis also spent time examining the Kashruth standards (adherence to Jewish dietary laws) at the Agriprocessors plant.  The rabbinic delegation walked through the slaughtering sections for both poultry and beef, and observed all aspects of the processing of the foods including the cooking and preparation of smoked meat.

Some of the Rabbis who are involved in Kashruth certification noted several unusual innovations in kosher observance that are unprecedented in the kosher food industry.  Rabbi Zvi Zuravin of the St. Louis Vaad Hair, one the oldest kosher certification agencies in the United States, said “What impressed me the most was the innovations in kosher slaughter, salting and the freedom of the kosher supervisory agencies to operate without management’s intrusion.”

During the course of their tour, the Rabbis noticed a number of inspectors from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), which is the government agency responsible for overseeing the meat and poultry production at the Agriprocessors plant.  While speaking with the Rabbis, the USDA inspectors said that the conditions at the plant, and the plant’s equipment and facilities were equal or better than other facilities that they have observed.

Following the tour of the plant, the Rabbis took a tour of the city of Postville.  They saw the modern affordable housing complexes that the Rubashkin family, the owners of Agriprocessors, had built for its workers and for members of the Postville community.  In fact, the mission participants discovered that a number of the families of the workers who were arrested during the May 12th raid are in fact still living in housing provided by the Rubashkins and paying limited, if any, rent.  The Rabbis also saw several dilapidated trailers, which are in visible need of repair, that were rented to workers by a Postville City Councilman, and which were mistakenly portrayed in the media as being owned and operated by Agriprocessors.  The Rabbis also saw Postville’s day care center, which was built by a number of individual and community groups, including the Rubashkins and Agriprocessors.

The Rabbis also visited the $12 million environmentally-friendly water treatment plant that Agriprocessors constructed.  The director of the facility, a professional with twenty-five years of experience in the field, demonstrated to the visitors how the state-of-the-art plant transforms unusable water to clean, healthy water for the city’s residents above the federally mandated requirements.

Postville Mayor Bob Penrod, whose family has been in Postville since the 1950’s, spoke to the rabbinic delegation about the central role that Agriprocessors plays in the city.  Mayor Penrod praised the Rubashkin family’s contribution to the economic and social well-being of the town of 2,500, and explained that the plant was responsible for employing more than one-third of the labor force in the ethnically diverse city.  The Mayor also spoke about how the May 12th raid at Agriprocessors had negatively impacted the financial well-being of Postville, and expressed hope that many Latino families would continue to consider making Postville their home.

When asked by the Rabbis about some of the Postville residents who have been vocal critics of the Agriprocessors plant, Mayor Penrod explained that for some people, change is daunting, and there is a desire among some to have the town revert back to the way it was in the 1950’s, before Postville became an ethnically diverse city.

“The Jewish community is extremely important to this town and we don’t want to see them leave,” said Mayor Penrod.

Pastor Gary Catterson of the Presbyterian Church of Postville and President of the city’s Food Bank told the Rabbis that although he heard the rumors in town about some of the reported abuses of workers, “he had never seen a shred of evidence of any such abuses.”  Pastor Catterson told stories of how the Rubashkins regularly contribute to the Food Bank.

“We have had nothing but the best experience with the Rubashkin family,” said Pastor Catterson.

Ryan Regenold, a representative of Jacobson Staffing, the national firm which presently oversees and works with the plant’s human resources operation, explained to the Rabbis that his firm is using the federal government’s E-Verification system in order to make certain that illegal workers are not hired by Agriprocessors to work at the plant.  Although using the E-Verification system is not mandatory, Regenold noted that it was being used at Agriprocessors to ensure that all immigration-related policies and procedures mandated by the federal government are strictly adhered to.

In addition, Regenold noted that Jacobson Staffing is utilizing recruiting managers who are bilingual in an attempt to preclude any possible miscommunication when dealing with potential workers during the hiring process.

The Rabbis inquired about media reports which centered on workers who were promised jobs and not hired, and others who were being underpaid.
 In response to these questions, Regenold explained that Jacobson Staffing advertises for workers all over the country, which is how the group of Somali workers discussed in these news stories found their way to Postville.  Regenold said that the group merely answered a
nationwide ad.  “We never promised anyone a job,” said Regenold.
“Some workers we hired, while others either had issues with
immigration or were inappropriate for the jobs being advertised.”
Those individuals who were not hired were given bus fare back to their city of origin.

Regenold also told the Rabbis that Agriprocessors is paying its new workers $10 an hour, which is well above Iowa’s minimum wage, which is currently $7.25 an hour.  “The pay scale is the same for everyone,” he said.  Regenold also said that as workers develop seniority, their pay scale increases considerably, and that many workers voluntarily work overtime, which pays 1 1/2 times the normal hourly rate.

Trent Gorton, a Postville resident who serves as the Safety Director at the Agriprocessors plant, told the Rabbis that Agriprocessors is nearly 100% compliant with all of the requirements set forth by the United States Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Any outstanding items are being addressed and will be resolved shortly.  Generally, employers tend to fall short of complete compliance with OSHA requirements, and a compliance rate of almost 100% is extraordinary.  Gorton said that “working for the Rubashkin family has been a treat,” and that he is “encouraged and inspired by what we are doing here.”

James Martin, a former United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Missouri who became Agriprocessors’ compliance officer, reported on some of the steps that have been taken at the plant in the area of worker relations.  Martin told the Rabbis that a toll-free hotline had been put in place so that workers can confidentially report any problems or concerns that they may have.  Information about the hotline is available for the workers throughout the plant in multiple languages.  In addition, Martin said that Agriprocessors has hired former agents from OSHA, the Internal Revenue Service, and the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement, in order to maintain a level of excellence at the plant when it comes to government compliance.

“Safety is our number one priority, even ahead of production,” Martin said.

Several of the Rabbis also met with worker advocates affiliated with St. Bridget’s Church, which historically has been critical of the plant and its management.  Although the entire group of Rabbis was initially scheduled to meet with the church representatives, many of the mission participants had to depart Postville in order to get to the airports and catch their flights home.  Due to the importance of this meeting, four of the Rabbis did rearrange their travel plans and remained behind in Postville in order to attend the meeting.

Rabbi Lerner of the National Council of Young Israel, Rabbi David Eliezrie of the Rabbinical Council of Orange County, California, and two other Rabbis from the group met with Paul Rael, the church’s Director of Lay Ministry, and Esther Lopez, a social worker associated with the church, for more than an hour.

The church representatives cited specific cases of alleged worker mistreatment at Agriprocessors and spoke about their desire to investigate those claims.  The Rabbis pledged to work with the representatives of the workers and the management at Agriprocessors to help facilitate their investigation and address the allegations.  As of this moment, the Rabbis are awaiting documentation of the alleged abuses to workers of the Agriprocessors plant.

Rabbi Lerner noted that a great deal of the problems between the St.
Bridget’s community and Agriprocessors was due to a lack of communication.  Although the church representatives acknowledged that the Rubashkin family had made an overture to the church, to date no meetings have taken place and there has been no direct communication between the parties.

“Part of the problem here appears to be a lack of communication,” said Rabbi Lerner, “It became very evident that there needs to be a dialogue between the church and Agriprocessors so that the two sides can have an open and honest conversation about the issues at hand.”

The Rabbis suggested that St. Bridget’s Church and Agriprocessors create a system where representatives from each entity meet with one another once a week so that the two sides can establish a relationship and a means by which issues and concerns can be addressed in person, rather than through the media.  The Rabbis discussed the proposal with the church representatives and the management at Agriprocessors, both of whom pledged to consider the proposal and get back to the Rabbis in short order.

“We are hoping that we can create a bridge of understanding between the Church representatives and the plant’s management,” said Rabbi Lerner, who noted that this is the first time that there has been a real effort to put the two groups together for the betterment of the community, “Together they can address the issues affecting the workers and actively seek solutions.”

After visiting the Agriprocessors plant first-hand, personally observing the operation, and speaking with the workers, the Rabbis marveled at how the media reports, which have traditionally placed a strong emphasis on statements from union officials and others who do not necessarily have personal knowledge of the situation, actually differ from the situation that they observed during their mission.

“The current situation at the Agriprocessors plant is diametrically opposed to the rumors and innuendos that we had heard before we got here,” said Rabbi Lerner, the Executive Vice President of the National Council of Young Israel, who organized the mission and led the group that came from fifteen cities in the United states and Canada.  Rabbi Lerner’s sentiments were shared by the other members of the mission.

“We saw the reality, not stories told over from others,” explained one member of the delegation, “That reality was far different than the one that has portrayed in the press.”

“There were no limitations placed on us as we inspected the facility and no boundaries imposed during our visit – everything and everyone was fair game,” said Rabbi Lerner. “We discovered workers being treated equitably and receiving fair wages and benefits.  We saw a state-of-the-art plant, a tremendous emphasis on safety, and excellent standards of Kashruth.  While we have no personal knowledge of what may or may not have happened in the past, the Agriprocessors plant that we saw today is far different than what has been reported.”

Rabbi Lerner promised to continue to work hard “to set the record straight with the help of the two-dozen witnesses who joined him on the July 31st trip to Postville, Iowa.  He explained that Agriprocessors was an important part of Jewish life in America, and noted that they are responsible for supplying 60% of glatt kosher beef and 40% of kosher poultry in the United States.  In addition, Rabbi Lerner pointed out that Agriprocessors also supplies kosher meat and chicken to some of the more remote communities in the United States, which would have no access to kosher food but for the products they receive from the Agriprocessors plant.

“What we observed in Postville was a ‘Cadillac’ with top of the line machinery and a heavy emphasis on safety, security, and health,” said Rabbi Lerner.  “Based on what we saw, this is a modern plant that is servicing an important need and working diligently to adhere to the highest workplace standards possible.  What we saw and heard is how the Rubashkins and Agriprocessors are going well above and beyond the call of duty and the requirements of the law.”

The following is a list of the individuals who traveled to Postville, Iowa for last week’s mission:

Rabbi Shmuel Bloom, Agudath Israel of America, New York Rabbi Naftali Burnstein, Young Israel of Greater Cleveland, Ohio Mr. Yehuda Ceitlin, COL, Radio 10 (Flatbush), Bakehila (Israel) Rabbi Edward Davis, Young Israel of Hollywood-Ft. Lauderdale, Florida and ORB Kashrut Commission Rabbi Yochonon Donn, Hamodia Newspaper, Brooklyn, New York Rabbi Moshe Elefant, Orthodox Union, New York Rabbi David Eliezrie, Rabbinical Council of Orange County, California  Rabbi Chaim Goldberger, Congregation Knesseth Israel of Minneapolis, Minnesota Rabbi Yair Hoffman, Five Towns Jewish Times, Lawrence, New York Rabbi Yechiel Kalish, Agudath Israel of America, Chicago, Illinois Rabbi Shauli Klein, Vaad Hakashrus of Dallas, Texas Rabbi Pesach Lerner, National Council of Young Israel, New York Rabbi Pinchos Lipschitz, Yated Ne’eman Newspaper, Monsey, New York Mr. Menachem Lubinsky, Lubicom Marketing Consulting, New York Rabbi Seth Mandel, Orthodox Union, New York Rabbi Daniel Moscowitz, Chicago Rabbinical Council, Chicago, Illinois Rabbi Chanoch Nelkin, Vaad Hatzdakus – Jewish Charity Commission – Toronto, Canada Rabbi Shlomo Rybak, Congregation Adas Israel in Passaic New Jersey, Rabbinical Council of America Rabbi Dovid Schochet, Rabbinical Council of Ontario/Vaad Rabbonei Lubavitch, USA and Canada, Rabbi Peretz Steinberg, Young Israel of Queens Valley, New York, and Vaad Halachah, Young Israel Council of Rabbis Rabbi Gershon Tennenbaum, Rabbinical Alliance (Igud Harobbonim) of America, New York Mr. Aaron Troodler, National Council of Young Israel, New York Rabbi Yaakov Wasser, Young Israel of East Brunswick, New Jersey, and Rabbinical Council of America Rabbi Asher Zeilingold, UMK Kosher, St. Paul, Minnesota Rabbi Zvi Zuravin, Vaad Harabbanim of St. Louis, Missouri