Federal Daily News
USDA poultry inspectors protest expansion of pilot program
Department of Agriculture poultry inspectors and others demonstrated outside department headquarters to protest proposed expansion of a pilot program that uses processing company workers instead of federal employees to man some inspection positions, reports Government Executive.
Proponents say the pilot program, which has been in place at about two dozen slaughterhouses since the late 1990s, speeds up inspections, and USDA wants to expand the effort to about another 175 facilities. Opponents of the program say the expedited inspections compromise consumer safety, according to the report.