Essential Workers

“If my work is essential, my rights can’t be optional!”

The phrase “essential worker” entered our common lexicon in 2020 during the COVID19 pandemic. While a record number of people began to work from home, so-called essential workers largely include low wage earners with front-line jobs critical to the functioning of society. Many of these jobs are notable for difficult working conditions and worker rights abuses.

This poster depicts a meatpacking plant, with a worker of color wearing a protective mask, hair net, and dirty apron facing the viewer. In the U.S in 2020, the median wage for a meatpacker is less than $14/hour. Immigrants, refugees and people of color comprise a large share of the workforce. Working in close, often unsanitary conditions to begin with, meatpacking plants and the rural areas surrounding them have been deadly coronavirus hotspots throughout the pandemic, as the industry has shown its eagerness to put profits ahead of people. In one farcical incident, managers at an Iowa pork plant were found to have placed bets on how many workers would get sick from the virus.