Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue urged food industry workers on Wednesday to comply with public health guidelines as the number of positive cases of coronavirus among meatpacking workers keeps rising.
Agriculture has been classified by the federal government as a critical industry that must remain operating even as the rest of the country shuts down to help contain the virus' spread. Public health officials recommend that such workers follow safety precautions such as wearing masks, maintaining social distancing and monitoring temperatures. Employers should also disinfect and clean work spaces.
"We need our local health authorities and our state health authorities to do everything they can to balance the demand of keeping our facilities operational and our critical industries going, while at the same time keeping the health and safety of employees as a top priority as well as our communities," said Perdue while speaking at the daily White House press conference on the outbreak.
The public assurance from government officials comes as food industry leaders have been frustrated by the lack of clarity on how they should handle the expanding Covid-19 outbreak., which allows people who may have been exposed to someone with Covid-19 to stay on the job. But other food industry leaders have found guidance from CDC insufficient for manufacturers trying to keep their employees safe.
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