hypertext essay 2

After reading Eric Schlosser’s Fast Food Nation I was very disturbed, yet, very awakened to the dangerous lives that many employees of the meat packing industry live. I could not believe some of the personal accounts, or mere statics that Schlosser encountered. People suffer severe injuries or even die in doing some of the jobs that the industry requires. People die without much recognition, and even though laws have become sterner, accidents still occur often. Limbs are lost, chemicals are inhaled, skin is damaged, health diminishes, and yet these workers continue to put their time and efforts in this industry, that they themselves, believe acknowledges and respects their employers. However in reality, their employers often falsify records and data so they do not have to report missed workdays. Even the work, the wages, the benefits are pathetic. But these low-waged workers, (which about 150,000 have been injured), are forced to accept the risks because many of these employees are uneducated, immigrant, unskilled, people just looking for a job.
As I did a quick research on the meat packing industry, not only did I see tons of pictures depicting the work environment, but I also saw the life-long injuries that will forever remain on that person’s body and the grotesque body’s of dead animals crudely hanging from hooks. Not only can people argue that this job is very dangerous for the employees themselves, but they can hit another angle of the spectrum by realizing that the killing of animals in the slaughterhouses is very cruel and disgusting. The top 4 companies that control 85% of the meat packing market in America, slaughter about 400 cattle an hour mainly because of the invention of machines to make everything run faster, (even worse for the workers because they try to keep up with the machines and are more susceptible to injuries in this way).
But still people demand meat, and it somehow must be produced, even if it costs someone’s arm and a leg. I do eat meat myself, but I think that a movement is needed to be able to better the benefits, or the work environment, of these workers, to make it a safer and healthier place. And although people have become vegetarians to protect animals, the desire for meat will always survive. I suggest that we fight for the rights of these meatpackers and we try to reduce the number of animal’s slaughter. I don’t think we should try to shutdown meatpackers because of the millions of jobs that people would lose, (even cattle raisers), but I definitely think there is something that needs to be done to help employees voice their opinions and fight for better life.