California hits Foster Farms with big fine for failing to protect workers from COVID outbreak

The California Division of Occupational Health and Safety has cited Foster Farms for failing to protect workers from COVID-19 at its Livingston poultry plant and distribution center. The agency has issued the multi-billion-dollar poultry company a proposed penalty of $181,500 — one of the steepest citations it has leveraged during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Foster Farms has stated that it will be appealing the violation, according to California Department of Industrial Relations spokesperson Erika Monterroza.

A representative for Foster Farms said the company “does not have a comment” on the citations.

Cal/OSHA opened the inspection last July after receiving notification that an employee had died from COVID-19 complications, the agency said in a news release Monday.

Following its investigation, completed May 17, the agency alleges that Foster Farms and one of its staffing agencies failed to immediately report at least four deaths of employees at the company’s food processing plant in Merced County last summer.

Cal/OSHA also alleges the company failed to “establish, implement and maintain” an effective system for communicating with its employees and contract employees regarding COVID-19 in the workplace, including regarding infections, outbreaks and fatalities. It also failed to effectively communicate with its own management about COVID-19 outbreaks and fatalities of employees, and failed to communicate measures it was taking to prevent employee exposure to the virus, Cal/OSHA says.

The agency also alleges Foster Farms failed to both maintain an effective Injury and Illness Prevention Program and to implement methods or procedures to fix conditions that left its employees and contract employees at higher risk for COVID-19. Cal/OSHA says the employer failed to provide or implement the use of effective face coverings; failed to implement physical distancing among employees; and failed to provide effective physical barriers among employees, among other violations.

It also alleges the company failed to providing training and instruction to its employees and contract employees regarding COVID-19, including training and instruction on how the virus is spread; measures to avoid inspection; how to properly disinfect face shields and shared equipment; and how to safely use cleaners and disinfectants, among other issues.

The agency opened a separate investigation at the facility’s Livingston distribution center. It alleges similar violations as at the processing facility, including failing to report at least three deaths due to illnesses related to COVID-19 last summer, failing to effectively communicate about COVID-19 in the workplace and failing to implement methods or procedures to correct conditions that threatened the health of employees and contract employees.

In all, Cal/OSHA has issued Foster Farms proposed penalties of $103,100 for five serious, one repeat regulatory and two regulatory violations at its Livingston plant, the agency said. It also issued the company proposed penalties of $78,400 for three serious, one repeat regulatory and two regulatory violations at the distribution center.

Cal/OSHA also issued fines to four staffing agencies that provide contract workers for Foster Farms. It leveraged proposed penalties of $41,000 to Human Bees, Inc.; $36,000 to Marcos Renteria Ag Services, Inc.; $18,000 to Intermountain Employment Services, doing business as Ascent Staffing; and $16,200 to Staffing Solutions, doing business as Balance Staffing.

Two of the agencies — Human Bees and Marcos Renteria — have already appealed the violations, according to Monterroza with the Department of Industrial Relations.

Merced County public health officials in late August ordered Foster Farms’ Livingston facility to shut down during a massive COVID-19 outbreak. At that time, at least 358 employees had tested positive for the virus and at least eight employees had died.

Following a lawsuit by the United Farm Workers, a Merced County Superior Court judge in February granted a preliminary injunction against Foster Farms. The order requires the company to protect its Livingston workers from becoming infectedw ith COVID-19.

This story was originally published May 24, 2021 at 3:49 PM with the headline "California hits Foster Farms with big fine for failing to protect workers from COVID outbreak."