JBS USA officials are refuting a lengthy new report by Mother Jones, in partnership with the Food & Environment Reporting Network, alleging that the company has not done enough to protect workers from a COVID-19 outbreak at the company’s Greeley, Colo., beef plant.
The report follows JBS USA’s April 24 reopening of the Greeley facility, which had closed for 11 days on orders from state and county public health officials. As of last week there were 245 COVID-19 positives and six COVID-19-related deaths among the plant’s workforce.
The Mother Jones story adds to a growing amount of critical media coverage that highlights the difficult balance the industry has between continuing production to supply the nation’s grocery stores and trying to protect workers in facilities that have become COVID-19 hotspots — a dilemma only more pronounced by a presidential executive order requiring packing plants to remain operational despite the spread of the virus in meat plants. Last month, Buzz Feed took a similar tack in its take on the outbreak that forced Smithfield Foods to shutter its Sioux Falls, S.D., plant. The company refuted such coverage at the time and has since said it is on the same page with its employees with regard to COVID-19 management.
Likewise, JBS officials say they are doing their best to protect workers in tough circumstances.
“We disagree with the claims made in this recent report and feel it categorizes JBS USA incorrectly,” the company said in a lengthy statement emailed to Meatingplace. “Though many Americans are rightly scared and anxious, there is only one enemy during this pandemic that will define a generation, and that is the virus. Working together, with public health as the collective true north guiding all of our decisions, we will get through this. We are doing our best to safely provide food for the country during an unprecedented time.”
The remainder of JBS USA’s response is as follows:
Greeley facility reopening
“The Greeley facility only reopened after multiple site visits and approval from CDC, NIOSH, the Weld County Department of Public Health and Environment and the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment. In addition, a third-party epidemiologist from the University of Colorado at Boulder toured the Greeley facility and provided recommendations that were subsequently adopted and implemented.
We are following the most up-to-date CDC and OSHA guidelines to the letter, considering them law in our facilities.
Weld County outbreak
We believed shutting down the Greeley facility was the most effective way to contribute to public health and assist in flattening the curve of community infection. When we were notified of the first positive case in our Colorado workforce on March 26, there were already more than 100 cases in the county.
During the time of plant closure, 275 new cases of coronavirus were reported in Weld County, which did not include any of our team members. Today, the county has 1,836 confirmed cases and tragically, 100 deaths. We are faced with a community outbreak here in Greeley, Colo.
Loss of life among our workforce
We are deeply saddened by the loss of our faithful team members. We have been and will continue offering support to the families during this time. We understand and share their anguish.
While we cannot know for certain how, where or when our team members were infected given the widespread nature of the virus, each case is heartbreaking. Our sympathies and condolences go out to everyone who has been impacted by this global pandemic.
Our team members can get tested
Under current testing protocols, if a team member tests positive, they are quarantined. In Greeley, we took the more aggressive action to voluntarily close the plant, assuming the entire workforce was positive and subject to quarantine. Public health officials agree this is the most effective way to break the chain of infection.
Today in Greeley, we are screening all team members for fever and respiratory illness before they enter the facility. We provide free COVID-19 testing for all symptomatic team members before they enter our Greeley facility.
In addition, the state of Colorado provided free testing for all of our team members over a five day period shortly after we re-opened the facility. We are not certain how many of our team members chose to be tested, but we fully support them being tested.
Finally, JBS USA is also providing free, drive-through COVID-19 testing 10 minutes away from our facility in Greeley. We will keep this testing site open for all of our team members and the broader Weld County community for a few weeks, depending on demand.
Interventions
During this pandemic, our primary focus has been team member health and safety. We have implemented enhanced safety protocols since late February and increased our prevention measures as we, along with the rest of the country, have learned more about the virus.
The CDC provided guidance that employers could temperature test employees on March 19. We ordered thermometers the next day. The CDC recommended the use of masks on April 3. We had already ordered masks on March 19, but global supplies were low and difficult to procure. We obtained masks on April 3 and mandated their company-wide use as soon as they were available in our facilities.
On March 19, we mandated health screenings, including fever and respiratory screening, of all team members and visitors before they are allowed to enter our facilities. A day later, we removed vulnerable populations from our facility, providing full pay and benefits. We have expanded this group in communities experiencing active outbreaks to include any team member 60 years or older, exceeding recently recommended guidelines from CDC.
We continue to partner with expert epidemiologists and medical professionals, as well as follow guidance provided by the CDC, local health departments and other officials, to prevent the potential spread of COVID-19.
JBS USA is providing an additional, company-funded short-term disability benefit for our team members beyond our standard regular leave policies. This includes providing up to 26 weeks of benefit payments to team members who are ill. Team members who are not ill but choose to self-quarantine may take unpaid leave. No one is forced to come to work sick.
PPE
All team members are provided, and required to wear, hard hats, ear protection, hair/beard nets, eye protection, surgical masks, frocks and steel-toed boots. Surgical masks must be worn on company property at all times.
Health screening
All team members must undergo a comprehensive screening for COVID-19 symptoms, including fever and respiratory checks, prior to entering the facility. Today, every JBS USA facility temperature checks 100% of the workforce before they enter a facility. We use hand-held thermometers and thermal imaging technology to screen every team member and immediately send sick team members home.
No one is forced to come to work and no one is punished for being absent for health reasons.
In addition, the company has implemented the following measures:
- Promoting physical distancing by staggering starts, shifts and breaks, and increasing spacing in cafeterias, break and locker rooms, including plexiglass dividers in key areas;
- Increasing sanitation and disinfection efforts, including whole facility deep-cleaning every day;
- Hiring dedicated staff whose only job is to continuously clean facilities, including common areas beyond the production floor;
- Removing vulnerable populations from facilities, offering full pay and benefits;
- Requiring sick team members to stay home from work;
- Waiving short-term disability waiting periods;
- Relaxing attendance policies so people don’t come to work sick;
- Providing free 100% preventative care to all team members enrolled in the company’s health plan;
- Offering free LiveHealth Online services for team members enrolled in the company’s health plan that allow for virtual doctor visits at no cost;
- Educating and encouraging team members to practice social distancing at home and in the community outside of work; and
- Restricting access to facilities and not allowing non-essential visitors.”
To access Meatingplace’s ongoing coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic, click here. To access our map of processing plants that have reported positive tests among employees, have closed and/or have reopened, click here.