Outbreaks at meat plants no surprise, union official says

CALGARY—The rapid spread of COVID-19 at Canada’s meatpacking plants isn’t a surprise, union and health officials say.

Fabian Murphy, president of the Agriculture Union, which represents federal meat inspectors, says recent safety measures put in place are positive.

But in a meat-processing plant, it’s difficult to keep the virus in check if people are already sick.

“If you’re in a meat plant with 2,000 other staff, you can’t stay six feet away from folks at all times,” Murphy says.

“You’re going to the lunchroom. You’re going to the wash stations to clean up ... You’re going to the locker-room to don on or off your clothing and equipment. And you’re going to the washroom. So it’s impossible to maintain that social distancing.”

The toll of COVID-19 on the meat-packing sector continues to grow. A shutdown of an Olymel plant in Quebec was followed by Harmony Foods near Calgary and a massive Cargill plant near High River, Alta. Cases are continuing to rise at a JBS plant in Brooks, Alta., but that plant remains open.

Murphy says the only way to resolve an outbreak in a meat plant is to shut it down for 14 days to give employees a chance to self-isolate.

Many employees in these plants are foreign workers who send money home to their families. He says the fear of losing a paycheque motivates some to show up for work instead of calling in sick.

Dr. Deena Hinshaw, Alberta’s chief medical health officer, says several measures were put in place at the Cargill plant to prevent spread of the novel coronavirus — distancing, Plexiglas-glass barriers and personal protective equipment.

“But because there are so many people who go in and out of these plants, it is possible that spread did occur before those protective measures were put into place,” she told reporters earlier this week.

As of Thursday, 440 workers at the Cargill facility had tested positive for COVID-19, including one who died, with another 140 cases linked to spread in the community.

At the Brooks plant, there have also been 96 confirmed cases of COVID-19 among workers.