Life and Death of the American Worker

The Immigrants Taking on America's Largest Meatpacking Company

By: Alice Driver

Write A Review

Paperback | 23 October 2025

At a Glance

Paperback
272 Pages

Dimensions(cm)
21.27 x 13.97 x 2.29

Paperback

RRP $39.99

$27.75

31%OFF

or 4 interest-free payments of $6.94 with

Ships in 10 to 15 business days

FEATURED IN THE NETFLIX DOCUMENTARY BIG CHICKEN: A FAST FOOD CONSPIRACY

Winner of the J. Anthony Lukas Work-in-Progress Award, and a New Yorker best book of the year, a “startling glimpse into the meatpacking industry’s abuse of undocumented and incarcerated workers” (The New York Times Book Review) and those who had the courage to fight back.

On June 27, 2011, a deadly chemical accident took place inside the Tyson Foods chicken processing plant in Springdale, Arkansas, where the company is headquartered. The company urged everyone return to work, although the spill left their employees injured, sick, and terrified. Over the years, Arkansas-based reporter Alice Driver was able to gain the trust of the immigrant workers who survived the accident. They rewarded her persistence by giving her total access to their lives.

During the course of Alice’s reporting, the COVID-19 pandemic struck the community, and the workers were forced to continue production in unsafe conditions, watching their colleagues get sick and die one by one. These essential workers, many of whom only speak Spanish and some of whom are illiterate—all of whom suffer the health consequences of Tyson’s negligence—somehow found the strength and courage to organize and fight back, culminating in a lawsuit against Tyson Foods, the largest meatpacking company in America.

A richly detailed, fiercely honest, and deeply reported “tour de force” (Publishers Weekly, starred review), Life and Death of the American Worker will forever change the way we think about the people who prepare our food.

Shipping

	Standard Shipping	Express Shipping
Metro postcodes:	$9.99	$14.95
Regional postcodes:	$9.99	$14.95
Rural postcodes:	$9.99	$14.95

Orders over $79.00 qualify for free shipping.

How to return your order

At Booktopia, we offer hassle-free returns in accordance with our returns policy. If you wish to return an item, please get in touch with Booktopia Customer Care.

Additional postage charges may be applicable.