Thread by @PhillyInquirer

1/ Employees say that Bell & Evans did not protect the 1,800 workers of its chicken processing plants in Fredericksburg, Pa. Mostly Latino, the workforce lives in the neighboring town of Lebanon, which is overrun with COVID-19 cases and has few ICU beds.

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2/ Three Bell & Evans employees have died from the coronavirus. The CDC says that Pa. has more confirmed cases of COVID-19 among meat production workers than any other state. How many of Lebanon’s cases can be traced to the plants is unknown.

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3/ “We practically work head to head. We work like less than one foot away,” a current employee who contracted COVID-19 told @astridrodrigues. Bell & Evans did not return multiple requests for comment.

Bell & Evans says it is following CDC guidelines, but @Calefati and @bobfernandez1 found risky policies in place. Asymptomatic employees must come in to work, even if they live with someone who has the virus. The plants have not done mass testing or shut down for sanitation.

5/ At the same time, the company is grappling with a salmonella problem that has worsened since January, when the USDA first detected unsafe levels of the bacteria in Bell & Evans’ ground chicken, which supplies gourmet stores including Whole Foods.

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6/ 40% of the county’s cases trace back to a zip code in Lebanon City where many plant workers live in multi-generational households with family members who may not have access to health care.

7/ Latinos account for 11% of Pennsylvania’s coronavirus deaths but only 8% of the state’s population. @jomoreno007 photographed a drive-by protest outside of the Bell & Evans plants, led by members of the Latino advocacy group Make The Road PA.

8/ Lebanon's infection rate is far higher than the level required by Gov. Tom Wolf to reopen safely. As of June 15, the county reported 1,190 cases and 40 deaths among its population of 142,000. You can track the spread of COVID-19 in Pa. here.

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9/ State Agriculture Secretary Russell Reading acknowledged there were gaps in meat processors’ response to the pandemic. He said 18 food processors with coronavirus outbreaks are receiving intensive help from the state. He wouldn’t name the companies or how many cases they had.

10/ In early May, Rep. Tarah Toohil introduced a bill that would require large businesses to report to the state how many workers test positive and how many recover or die. That data would be public. The bill has bipartisan support but lawmakers haven’t taken any action on it.

11/ You can learn more about the coronavirus' spread among Lebanon's Latino community here.

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Correction: Two Bell & Evans employees died. One death was that of an employee's family member.

Correction: The correct spelling of the state Agriculture Secretary's last name is Redding.