Tyson Foods, one of the biggest processors of beef, chicken, and pork in the U.S., is planning to raise employee wages to combat worker turnover and meet rising demand for meat products across the country.

The Springdale, Arkansas-based company, which processes 20% of U.S. beef, chicken and pork, said Monday that absentee rates are around 50% higher than they were before the pandemic.

 

U.S. meatpacking workers were among those hard hit by the pandemic. Last year, the families of three Tyson workers in Iowa who died from COVID-19 sued the company, saying it knowingly put employees at risk in the early days of the outbreak.

 

The staffing issues hurt production just as restaurants are reopening and demand for chicken is soaring. KFC, McDonald’s and Wendy’s all introduced crispy chicken sandwiches in January and February. Smashburger followed with a hot chicken sandwich last month. Tyson said annual servings per capita of chicken sandwiches at U.S. restaurants are up 14%.

The exact specifications of the compensation increase have not been announced yet, but they may follow the trend of the country’s restaurant industry, which has been forced to raise wages and improve working conditions to attract new employees.

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