Workers at the Nutra Blend animal feed facility in Madera voted to join the Teamsters Union this month. Image via Google Earth

Workers at Nutra Blend in Madera have voted to join Teamsters Local 517, a local union representing milk haulers, creamery and dairy employees, and medical employees in the Central Valley.

The 67 workers at Nutra Blend, a subsidiary of Land of Lakes, are responsible for producing animal feed.

According to the National Labor Relations Board that handles union elections, of the 51 ballots counted, 38 voted in favor of organizing.

Local 517 Secretary-Treasurer Greg Landers credited the workers for their resolve.

“We’re looking forward to negotiating a contract that addresses the issues that they care about the most — ending favoritism, annual wage increases, improved health care and retirement benefits, protection against unjust retaliation, and more,” he said.

The union provides retiree health insurance, life and accident insurance and discounts on auto and home insurance, among other benefits, according to the Teamsters website.

“This is an important victory in the ongoing fight to bring strong wages, a voice on the job and the benefits on middle class prosperity to all workers in the food supply chain,” said Teamster’s Food Processing Division Director Peter Finn in a news release. “We’re looking forward to negotiating a contract that reflects how valuable these men and women are to both their industry and their communities.”

The Teamsters Union was started in 1903 and has grown to 1.2 million members, including 358 affiliates in the United States and 22 in Canada. 

At the end of July, iron workers at Pevik Construction in Madera voted to join a union.