Tyson Foods will eliminate 1,761 jobs at its Amarillo beef-processing complex in early 2026 as the company shuts down an entire production shift, according to a notice filed with Texas state regulators.
The Arkansas-based meat processor detailed the cuts in a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) notice to the Texas Workforce Commission and Amarillo Mayor Cole Stanley. The filing states that B-shift operations at the Amarillo facility will end on or about Jan. 20, 2026, and that all B-shift positions will be eliminated at that time. B-shift refers to the plant’s second production shift, typically covering afternoon and evening hours.
The Amarillo plant is one of the area’s major employers and the job cuts form part of a broader restructuring of Tyson’s beef operations. At the same time, Tyson is closing a large beef-processing plant in Lexington, Nebraska, as part of the same national realignment.
In Texas, the 44-page WARN notice includes a detailed job-title attachment that lists affected roles across the Amarillo complex. Positions slated for elimination range from production laborers and machine operators to maintenance, packaging and quality-assurance jobs.
“Tyson Foods regrets that all B-shift positions will be eliminated and that team members will be displaced yet hopes to accomplish this layoff with the least possible disruption to the lives of the team members, their families, and the community,” the company wrote in the filing.
The notice does not specify whether Tyson expects to restart the second shift in the future. The company cited “forecasting challenges” that make it unclear if or when B-shift operations might resume. It added that, because of the nature of beef-processing work, some positions tied to the B-shift may continue “for a short time past the date above” to complete ongoing production and transition tasks.
Tyson said the layoffs fall under its collective-bargaining agreement with Teamsters Local Union 577, which outlines bumping rights for unionized workers. Under those provisions, eligible union members may have the ability to move into other jobs based on seniority and contract rules. Employees who are not part of the bargaining unit do not have bumping rights, according to the WARN notice.
The Amarillo cuts follow a series of plant closures and consolidations across Tyson’s beef business as the company adjusts capacity and costs in response to market conditions.
