BUSINESS

Workers walk out of Pilgrim's Pride in Cold Spring over COVID-19 concerns

Sarah Kocher
St. Cloud Times

COLD SPRING — Workers continue to request the state intervene at Pilgrim's Pride in Cold Spring, again citing concerns for worker safety.

The request follows an employee walkout Monday around 10 p.m. in protest of how the poultry processing facility is handling worker safety during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Stearns County Public Health confirmed last week there are employees at both Pilgrim's Pride in Cold Spring and Jennie-O in Melrose who have tested positive for COVID-19. A news release said the county is working with the companies as well as the Minnesota Department of Health and CentraCare, and responsive action plans are in progress.

The Pilgrim's Pride plant is pictured Tuesday, April 28, 2020, in Cold Spring. Some workers staged a walkout Monday night at the plant over COVID-19 concerns.

According to Mohamed Goni, staff organizer at the Greater Minnesota Worker Center present at the walkout Monday evening, more than 100 workers walked out. A statement from Pilgrim's Pride said the number demonstrating was closer to 20 and included workers as well as local activists.

"We listened to their concerns and explained the extensive measures the company has taken to prevent the spread of coronavirus among our workforce," said a statement emailed Tuesday from Cameron Bruett, head of corporate affairs for JBS USA & Pilgrim's. "The brief disruption had no impact on operations."

Workers cited several safety concerns Tuesday in a video call with the Times translated by Goni.

Mohammed Burale, a night shift worker, said he was at home this week but in support of the walkout because he sees coworkers with COVID-19 symptoms still working or coming back to work within a few days.

According to Burale and Jowhar Omar, who also works nights at Pilgrim's Pride, information about positive coronavirus cases came from phone calls with coworkers who said they tested positive, not from management.

"Given the widespread nature of the virus, we cannot know for certain how, where or when our team members were infected," the statement from Bruett at Pilgrim's said. "We wish everyone impacted by this common enemy a healthy and speedy recovery."

The Minnesota Department of Health has not returned calls requesting the number of confirmed cases at Pilgrim's Pride.

A sign near the main entrance to the Pilgrim's Pride plant is pictured Tuesday, April 28, 2020, in Cold Spring.

Stearns County Public Health Division Director Renee Frauendienst said Wednesday the county is focusing on making sure employees are referred for testing, and that household contacts and family members also get tested.

If someone tests positive, the county tries to educate people on what isolation and quarantine should look like as well as what resources are available to them, Frauendienst said.

She said the Minnesota Department of Health and Minnesota Department of Agriculture did a site visit at Pilgrim's Pride, though did not confirm when, and identified some "minor" things to help protect employees from the spread of the novel coronavirus. A Stearns County staff member also went on the site visit.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention set guidelines for screening meat and poultry processing workers. In workplaces with a confirmed COVID-19 case, CDC guidelines tell employers to inform anyone who could have come into contact with that person while still meeting confidentiality requirements set by the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Burale and Omar said their departments are low on staff, and, with fewer people reporting to work, there is more work to be done.

There are a number of reasons people are not at work, Goni said. The biggest impact was from schools closing, as parents stayed home to look after their children.

There are also the people not working because they feel sick or have tested positive, and some also walked out, Goni said.

"We are mindful of the increasing number of facilities across the U.S. that have experienced decreased production or outright closure," the statement from Pilgrim's said. "We will endeavor to keep our facilities open to help feed the nation, but we will not operate a facility if we do not believe it is safe."

Kadir Nuur, a Pilgrim's Pride employee, said the facility has taken some protective measures, including putting plastic dividers between workers. However, he is skeptical of their efficacy. He also does not consider bathrooms to be sufficiently cleaned.

Nuur said the employees all want their jobs, but they want to feel safe.

According to the statement from Pilgrim's Pride, these are some of the preventative efforts taken: 

  • Requiring sick workers to stay home;
  • Screening team members before entry with hands-free thermometers and thermal imaging technology;
  • Deep-cleaning the whole facility and increasing cleaning efforts;
  • Providing extra personal protective equipment, including masks to be worn at all times;
  • Staggering start times, shifts and breaks;
  • Increasing spacing in cafeterias and break and locker rooms;
  • Providing physical partitions on production lines;
  • And "removing vulnerable populations from our facilities, offering full pay and benefits."

Goni said he has not seen this much frustration since he began working with these Pilgrim's Pride employees two years ago.

The company's statement said it will not be releasing further information out of respect for families. It cited the health and safety of its team members as its No. 1 priority.

The CDC guidelines say workers should be screened before they go inside the facility, and anyone with a temperature of more than 100.4º should not be allowed inside to work. Employees should also not be let in if they report feeling feverish. The CDC also recommends verbal screening, asking workers specific questions about COVID-19 symptoms.

Workers who appear sick or who become sick during work should be immediately separated and sent home, the guidelines say.

Related: Cold Spring Pilgrim's Pride facility has taken extensive safety measures, company says

This is a developing story. Check back for more updates.

Sarah Kocher is the business reporter for the St. Cloud Times. Reach her at 320-255-8799 or skocher@stcloudtimes.com. Follow her on Twitter @SarahAKocher.

Support local journalism. Subscribe to sctimes.com today.