The dispute centers on allegations that fifteen beef- and pork-processing companies, which collectively produce more than 80 percent of red meat sold to consumers in the United States, violated Section 1 of the Sherman Antitrust Act by conspiring to fix wages from January 2000 through the present day.
The latest settlements resolve claims against Greater Omaha Packing Co., Inc. and Agri Stats, Inc. The agreement with Greater Omaha requires the company to pay $100,000 into a settlement fund and produce structured compensation data for class members it employed. In exchange, the action is dismissed against Greater Omaha with prejudice.
The settlement with Agri Stats requires the consulting firm to eliminate specific data fields from its pork processing reports if it resumes publishing them in the United States. Agri Stats must also produce structured data for its Swine Processing and Operations Profits books from 2008 through June 2018.
U.S. District Judge Philip A. Brimmer granted the motion for preliminary approval, finding that the proposed settlement classes satisfy Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23. The court certified a settlement class consisting of all persons employed by the defendants and their subsidiaries at beef- or pork-processing plants in the continental United States from January 1, 2000, until February 27, 2024.
The court appointed Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC, Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP, and Handley Farah & Anderson PLLC as co-lead settlement class counsel. The court also stayed all proceedings against Greater Omaha and Agri Stats to effectuate the settlements.
Notice to the settlement class is scheduled to commence on or before May 1, 2026. The court has ordered the parties to schedule a final fairness hearing within seven days of the April 16, 2026 order.