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METERArco * felt the phlegm build up heavily in his chest for five days before calling his local health center and telling them he worked at the meat plant. It was tested in a few hours, the result was positive.
“One hundred percent, I know I got it at the factory,” he says. “If the disease were in animals, they would have closed the place. But for workers, factories can do whatever they want.”
Marco is one of the many workers who have contacted The Guardian about conditions at some meat plants since the pandemic began. Speaking on condition of anonymity, workers in factories in Ireland and Northern Ireland say not enough was done at the start of the outbreak to minimize their exposure, and that while some protective measures now exist, they still don’t feel safe on the job. .
For Marco, who has worked in the same factory for more than a decade, it is too little, too late. “I felt scared,” he says. “The damage is already done.”
When you see the conditions: it is a dirty and unpleasant place, nobody is happy
Life as a meat plant worker is a bloody, low-wage business, the workers told the Guardian. “It is horrible to kill cows, when you see how they do it,” says Florin *, a Romanian worker who has worked at a meat plant in the Republic of Ireland for over five years he said. “They kill him, they shoot him, they cut his neck, they cut his legs. I don’t like it. The cow is slow, an emotional thing. And you see the blood, and they go from being alive to being in pieces. That’s the way. When you see the conditions, it is a dirty and unpleasant place, nobody is happy. “The temperatures in the factories can be around 4 ° C, with industrial ceiling fans that circulate cold air to keep the meat free of microbes. The work is repetitive and hard; workers take pain relievers to pass their shifts.
Countries around the world with industrialized meat supply chains are now grappling with serious outbreaks of coronavirus in meat plants and processed foods. Official figures show that there were outbreaks at 12 plants in the Republic of Ireland and 571 workers tested positive. In Northern Ireland, union officials have expressed serious concerns and a worker died last week.
Workers point out bottlenecks in toilets and bathrooms; locker rooms, where workers crowd before and after work; and the dining rooms, where they gather to eat. The greatest risks occur during eight-hour shifts at the factory where they work half a meter or less away from their colleagues on the production line.
They say factories have not made sure workers have personal protective equipment, or that they have adhered to social distancing guidelines. “There was no social distancing,” says Marco. “You had to go through areas where everyone was on top of themselves, sneezing and coughing.”
“They didn’t give us masks or gloves. We had to buy ours,” Florin said. “People are scared, they say it’s not safe.”
In addition to the lack of safety equipment, the fact that migrants make up the vast majority of the workforce in the meat industry is also an issue, with many traveling from Timor-Leste, Lithuania, China, Poland, South Africa, Romania, Bulgaria and Brazil to work. Marco says that his factory did not give enough information to non-English speakers about how they could support themselves, and those around them, safe from infection.
In general, migrant workers have established themselves well in Irish life. Pablo *, who was recruited from his hometown in Africa, says he always felt welcome by the local people. But in the factory, where he makes around € 11.80 (£ 10.40) an hour, life is difficult. Workers feel intimidated and vulnerable, and cannot defend their legal rights, he says. “People are not being treated with dignity and respect.”
Pablo says that until a few weeks ago, aside from posting government notices about Covid-19 on the walls, his factory put nothing in place to protect its workers. “There was no temperature control, no masks, and no social distance of 2 meters. When we asked for masks, they said no. “He says he does not feel safe at work and is sure he will become infected with the virus.” New workers are hired to replace people who are sick, but we do not know if they have been examined. “
Due to their low wages, many migrant workers live in communal houses and some have to share rooms. “They don’t feel safe, but they have to work,” says Adriana *, a Polish worker at a meat factory in Northern Ireland. There are perspex screens in parts of the factory, and worker temperatures are now controlled, but there is still no distancing inside the factory, and workers are scared.
Santos *, a Brazilian worker at a meat plant south of the border, says that many of his coworkers have low levels of English and don’t know their rights, such as social support if they are sick. “If these people have the virus, who will help them? How are they going to get food?
After his positive diagnosis for the virus, Marco is now recovering at home. He receives a weekly payment from the government and says his health is fine. But he wants an investigation into what has happened in the meat factories. “I’m so angry, how can a government allow this? They forgot about us, they didn’t care. It’s shocking.”
* Names have been changed
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