May 22, 2008

As the country\’s largest kosher slaughterhouse scrambles to stay open after a federal raid, former workers at the plant — many of them still fearful of retribution from government authorities — have begun to tell their stories, revealing new details of conditions there.

Agents in the May 12 raid at the Agriprocessors plant in this small northeastern Iowa town arrested 389 illegal workers, among them 18 juveniles.

In recent days, former employees have been painting a picture of a company indifferent to federal laws prohibiting slaughterhouses from employing workers younger than 18 and where workers frequently were pressured to exchange sexual favors for preferred treatment.