London, Ont., meat plant shut for 2 weeks amid COVID-19 outbreak affecting 82 workers

A London, Ont., meat-processing plant with 900 employees has been shut down temporarily to deal with a growing COVID-19 outbreak, with the number of active cases now at82.

The Cargill plant, which processes poultry, was closedfor 14 days effective immediately as a precaution, authorities said.

A company spokesperson saidthenumber of active cases involving employees is now at 82. A handful of cases wasfirst reported about two weeks ago.

"As we continue to prioritize the health and safety of Cargill employees, we have decided to temporarily idle our London protein facility," said plant manager Derek Hill.

"This was a difficult decision for our team who are operating an essential service, and are committed to delivering food for familiesacross Canadaandensuringtheresilience of our supply chain.But ultimately, our employees'safety and well-beingcomefirst."

Hill said the plant will work to safely get it back tonormal operations.

The company is implementing "extensive safety protocols" and working closely with local health officials, particularly to get workers vaccinated as soon as possible.

"Getting people home and into quarantine is critical," said Dr. Alex Summers, associate medical officer of healthfor Middlesex-London Health Unit.He called the shutdown"an absolutely essential step that needed to happen."

ACargill meat-packing plant in Alberta which has about 2,000 employees and processes around a third of Canada's processed beef supply once hadNorth America's largest COVID-19 outbreak linked to a single site. It now hosts a vaccination clinic.

Summers saidfood-processing plant workers being in close proximityis likely one factor contributing to virus spread. In the case of the London plant, social interactionsamong workers that took place outside the facility may have also contributed, he said.

In Ontario, the company said it's working with local officials and the union representing workers to vaccinate employees.

Cargill plant prepares for vaccination clinic

3 years ago

Duration 0:58

The medical officer of health for Alberta Health Services explains the vaccination strategy for the workers of the Cargill plant in High River, Alta.

"We want to ensure we are prepared to support public health" and help workersreceivevaccinations in a timely manner "without jeopardizing the prioritization of essential health-care workers."

"We do think [workers'] health and safety needs to be the number one priority," saidTim Deelstra, a spokesperson for UFCWLocal175 and633, which represents more than 700 workers at the plant.

"That's why, as a union, since vaccines were available, we've been calling on the provincial government for the public health units to prioritize these essential frontline workers for access to a vaccine. And this is a perfect example of why."

Employees will get a weekly guarantee of 36 hours of pay per week.

The company said it has put in placea number of safety measures at the facility, including:

• Temperature testing.
• Enhanced cleaning and sanitizing.
• Use of face coverings.
• Social distancing where possible.