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Chick-News.com Poultry Industry News, Comments and more by Simon M. Shane

Social Activist Groups File Administrative Complaint with USDA Over COVID-19

07/14/2020

A coalition of activist groups including the Food Chain Workers Alliance, HEAL Food Alliance, and the American Friends Service Committee are represented by Public Justice and Towards Justice in their filing of an administrative complaint with the USDA.  This action accuses Tyson Foods and JBS in engaging in racial discrimination during the COVID-19 pandemic, prohibited by the Civil Rights Act.

 

On March 28th an Executive Order required that all meat-packing and poultry processing plants should reopen and continue to function in accordance with the recommendations of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).  The complaint is based on the disproportionate number of Latino, Black, Asian and other minority groups contracting COVID-19 in packing plants operated by Tyson Foods and JBS.  It must however be recognized that the groups enumerated represent the majority of line workers in plants. The complaint requests the USDA to refer the apparent discrepancy in incidence rates among minorities to the Department of Justice.

 

In response to the complaint, the companies concerned have emphasized that measures to prevent both introduction and dissemination of COVID-19 within their facilities were in accordance with the state of knowledge at the time and conformed to CDC recommendations.  It is noted that in the early stage of outbreaks in plants, Perdue Farms and Tyson Foods acted on the advice of public health authorities and epidemiologists and proactively implemented protective measures. 

 

The industry was hampered by a shortage of available PPE, the absence of reliable antigen detection tests and logistic restraints.  It is self-evident that the companies concerned together with the rest of the industry relied on employees to optimize function within their plants to sustain the supply chain from farms to consumers. It is presumed that no well-intentioned company would have knowingly or deliberately avoided their responsibilities towards employees or omitted to impose any known effective preventive measure to the detriment of their workers. 

 

The complaint by the consortium addressed to the USDA is yet another example of a meaningless, politically-inspired initiative, devoid of practical benefit to workers. The USDA would be well advised to reject the petition with appropriate justification.


 
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