GREELEY, COLORADO — Workers at the Swift Beef Co. plant in Greeley, Colorado, agreed to return to work on Tuesday morning and halt a three-week strike after plant owner JBS USA agreed to resume negotiations. JBS USA said it would reopen talks later in the week.

The strike, coordinated with the United Food and Commercial Workers Local 7 union, began on March 16. Thousands of workers walked off the job to demand higher wages and better health care, making it the first strike at a U.S. slaughterhouse since a strike at a Hormel plant in Minnesota in 1985. That earlier dispute lasted more than a year and included violent confrontations between police and protesters.

Kim Cordova, the local union president, said, "Workers remain united and will continue to fight." Union officials accused management at Swift Beef Co. of retaliating against workers and committing unfair labor practices. Union officials also said the company had offered less than 2% more a year in wages, which they said was less than inflation in Colorado.

JBS USA denied any labor law violations and said its contract offer was fair. Nikki Richardson, a JBS USA spokesperson, said, "Our Last, Best and Final offer remains on the table." Richardson added, "We hope employees will have the opportunity to review and vote on it soon."

JBS is the world's largest meatpacking company, with a market capitalization of $17 billion. The company is the top employer in Greeley, a city of about 114,000 people located 50 miles northeast of Denver. The Greeley plant accounts for about 6% of total U.S. beef slaughterhouse capacity.

U.S. cattle numbers hit a 75-year low this year, a decline driven in part by drought and low prices offered to ranchers. Beef prices have reached record levels, and the price for 100% ground chuck beef increased from $2.55 to $6.07 per pound over the past two decades. Jennifer Martin, an animal sciences department faculty member, said an extended strike at the Greeley plant threatened to disrupt the industry and could drive up prices.

The Colorado walkout followed the January closure of a meatpacking plant in Lexington, Nebraska. JBS pleaded guilty in October to bribing Brazilian officials for financing used for its U.S. expansion.