Jackson

Tales from the Heartland On the banks of the Mississippi in an Iowa city, the Jackson Meatpacking Company and its two thousand employees are in trouble. Cutthroat competition has driven the company to the brink of bankruptcy. Jackson's mayor, a packinghouse worker himself, proposes an employee buyout. However, the idea is quickly stolen from him by the company's CEO, who will do anything to save the packinghouse, even if it means putting his employees' life savings at risk. Soon the company board, the union and even rank-and-file employees are fighting to make the plan their own. The whole town is drawn into the battle over company survival, as the people of Jackson face a seemingly impossible choice. Author tour: Upper Midwest, Berkeley, CA