Jody Wells
Appearances
Planet Money
The controversy over Tyson Foods' hiring of asylum seekers
The F word, I love it. That's the one that got me in trouble all the time.
Planet Money
The controversy over Tyson Foods' hiring of asylum seekers
Well, when we first got there, we were all laughing and joking and, you know, we're like family there, so. Then the managers passed around a stack of papers announcing the closing. And then when they handed that out, you could see people tear up and get mad and They're asking, what do we do now? It was just like, everybody was so sad and upset. How were you? Oh, to be honest, I was pissed.
Planet Money
The controversy over Tyson Foods' hiring of asylum seekers
That's the only nicest way I could put it. Because I didn't feel like they needed to close down our plant.
Planet Money
The controversy over Tyson Foods' hiring of asylum seekers
Oh, the last day was just so heartbreaking. I stayed till the last person walked out of the plant. It was just a lot of tears. People wanted to keep their IDs for souvenirs. You know, all these people, they liked working there. A lot of them had been there for, you know, 10, 15, 20 years.
Planet Money
The controversy over Tyson Foods' hiring of asylum seekers
Yes, to Waterloo and Tennessee.
Planet Money
The controversy over Tyson Foods' hiring of asylum seekers
Correct. I don't recall the number, but it wasn't everybody. It was just a certain amount.
Planet Money
The controversy over Tyson Foods' hiring of asylum seekers
Oh, no, we had, let's see, we had Hispanics from all over, Africans. At one time, we had Bosnians. We had Burmese. I think it's Salvadorans, you know, people from all over.
Planet Money
The controversy over Tyson Foods' hiring of asylum seekers
They're here to support their family. How can I be mad at somebody if they're here to better their lives? I wouldn't want somebody preventing me from taking care of my kids.
Planet Money
The controversy over Tyson Foods' hiring of asylum seekers
I know people are upset that they think that immigrants are taking people's jobs. But if you want to work at a Tyson, apply.
Planet Money
The controversy over Tyson Foods' hiring of asylum seekers
I don't know if I was excited. I had three kids that I needed to take care of, and I heard they paid better than most places in town.