So Trump ordered meat plants to remain open, but what's he going to do when the workers don't show up?
New York (CNN Business)Meat-processing plant workers are concerned about President Donald Trump's executive order that compels plants to remain open during the coronavirus pandemic. Meat plant employees are among America's most vulnerable workers, and some say they expect staff will refuse to come to work.
"All I know is, this is crazy to me, because I can't see all these people going back into work," said Donald, who works at Tyson's Waterloo, Iowa, facility. "I don't think people are going to go back in there."
Can't say I'd blame them.
The United Food and Commercial Workers International Union estimated Tuesday that 20 meatpacking and food processing workers have died so far.
Well, that's a union guesstimate; they don't have any actual numbers. But under the best of circumstances, meat processing plants generally feature pretty crummy working conditions, which explains a lot:
Nearly 30% of meat-packing workers are foreign-born, said a 2016 Government Accountability Office report. Nearly two-thirds are either Latino (35%), Black (20%) or Asian (8%), according to a 2016 Northwest Arkansas Workers' Justice Center report.
Injury and illness rates in the meat and poultry slaughtering and processing industry declined from 2004 through 2013, similar to rates in all U.S. manufacturing, according to Department of Labor (DOL) data (see figure), yet hazardous conditions remain. The rates declined from an estimated 9.8 cases per 100 full-time workers in 2004 to 5.7 in 2013. However, these rates continued to be higher than rates for manufacturing overall. Meat workers sustained a higher estimated rate of injuries and illnesses than poultry workers, according to DOL data. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) evaluations and academic studies have found that workers continue to face the hazardous conditions GAO cited in 2005, including tasks associated with musculoskeletal disorders, exposure to chemicals and pathogens, and traumatic injuries from machines and tools.
So Trump's going to do what? Send out posses and force the the labor back into the plants?
I don't think that's going to work.
