Union seeks to represent workers at ConAgra plant

Employees at ConAgra Foods' Lamb Weston sweet potato processing plant near Delhi will decide next week whether to unionize.

Workers will vote Wednesday in an election administered by the National Labor Relations Board to determine whether they will join the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union, reports The News-Star reports.

A ConAgra spokeswoman at the firm's Omaha, Neb., headquarters says it doesn't want a middleman between managers and employees.

Union organizer Ronald Howington says a union would protect workers from unfair treatment. He claims he was fired recently because of his union advocacy.

The plant employs 275 workers with an average annual wage of $34,000 to $35,000, according to the company and the state. The state lured the plant with an incentive package worth up to $37.5 million.