Ottumwa mayor concerned over JBS visa revocations
Ottumwa Mayor Rick Johnson announced at a city council meeting that JBS has revoked work visas for more than 200 employees from Haiti and Cuba, requiring them to leave the country.
"When you have 200 people leave the community, it's a very sad and disheartening thing that is happening. But, it definitely has a negative impact on our community," Johnson said.
Johnson expressed his displeasure after the JBS announcement, noting that plant workers from Haiti, Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua received letters stating that they had been terminated and that they had to leave the country immediately.
The meat packing union is also concerned, saying all the workers had legal work visas before they were revoked and broke no laws.
"They just did what everybody else wanted to do. They wanted to come here for a decent job, to have a better life and support their family. It was themselves, and it's like the rug jerked out from underneath them because of some political decisions, which I don't personally agree with," said Brian Ulin of UFCW 1846.
Johnson is particularly unhappy with the crackdown, especially since the same meat packing workers were deemed essential during the COVID-19 pandemic.
"I have no idea if this is the tip of the iceberg, if this is all this going to take place, or is there going to be more employees down the road that are also going to have their work visas revoked? It's very alarming and very concerning to me. And I think to our whole community," Johnson said.
The workers must now leave the country, but it is not clear how soon they have to leave.