Granja Tres Arroyos poultry plant strike intensifies as workers demand unpaid wages

Around 1,000 employees at the La China plant of Granja Tres Arroyos in Concepción del Uruguay have halted production after receiving only 20% of their April salaries and facing months of delayed payments. Union leaders say the plant, which processes 180,000‑190,000 chickens daily, is burdened by more than $35 million in unpaid cheques and a looming electricity debt, prompting fears of closures and further hardship for workers and their families.

The dispute, which began earlier this year and resurfaced in March, led to a mandatory conciliation hearing set by provincial labor delegate Dr. Marcos Ayerbe. Representatives of the Sindicato de la Carne, the Sindicato de Trabajadores de las Industrias de la Alimentación (STIA), and company management will meet to try to resolve the wage arrears and restore production, after previous agreements and partial repayments failed to settle the conflict.