Brazil’s prosecutors make Marfrig agree to more worker protections amid pandemic
Meat packing giant Marfrig Global Foods has signed a settlement with Brazil’s labour prosecutors that will improve protections for workers amid COVID-19 cases in meat processing plants.
2 June 2020
1 minute read
Reuters reports that Marfrig’s settlement includes routine testing of workers for COVID-19. According to a statement from Brazil’s labour prosecutors, the company must impose mandatory 1.5 meters in physical distancing between workers at plants.
In a separate statement on Monday, Marfrig, which is majority owner of National Beef Co LLC in the United States, said it would test all 18,000 workers starting on 2 June as part of its prevention efforts.
The testing routine Marfrig has agreed to may involve so-called rapid serological testing of workers and tests that use the reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction molecular method, known as RT-PCR, for employees working "in shared environments," the prosecutors said.
Marfrig must also immediately remove "symptomatic workers" from the plants until testing is conducted, for a minimum period of 14 days, in accordance with official health protocols.
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