Thread by @voice_wales

THREAD:
While Donald Trump has contracted Covid & given world class healthcare unavailable to ordinary Americans, it has been workers and working class communities the world over who have been most affected by this virus. This is how we’ve reported on these issues in Wales. 1/19

On Sunday, we published the final instalment of a diary of a food factory worker during Covid. A first hand account, it shows how working class people have been the most at risk of contracting Coronavirus and being made to pay for the economic fallout2/19
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At the start of the pandemic, the worker found himself on universal credit & having to use food banks. He was desperate for any type of work, so took a job via an employment agency with a meat processing plant.3/19
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In part 2, he saw that it was impossible to socially distance and there was no PPE. “Still no face masks or face visors are worn despite rumours that several workers had been off sick," he wrote. Eventually, there was a widespread Covid outbreak at the factory. 4/19

The writer himself contracted the virus, yet was only entitled to statutory sick pay and thrown into financial difficulty once more. He couldn’t even get a refund on his monthly bus pass, even though it was now useless. He was effectively punished for getting Covid at work. 5/19

As he wrote in part 3, the situation facing migrant workers was even more perilous: “Migrant workers often live in large households; cannot afford to miss work due to financial pressure here and often in their home country [and] a general fear of losing their jobs.”6/19

Given this situation, it is hardly surprising that there were outbreaks in the food industry in Wales and elsewhere. In Northern Ireland, two food workers from East Timor died from Covid. “These workers keep us fed; we must keep them safe,” the writer says. 7/19

But it isn't just the food sector, workers everywhere have been exposed to Covid, and often in some of the lowest paid - but most essential - jobs. Workers in the privately run care sector are often paid minimum wage, work long hours & have been badly exposed to Covid. 8/19

We interviewed NHS workers about the shocking lack of PPE. Many died. ““Things have gotten really crazy at work. ITU filling with our own, our staff dropping like flies. Everyone is very scared,” a health care assistant told us. 9/19
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In general, areas that have higher levels of poverty have been more exposed to the virus, partly because these areas contain workers most at risk, but also because their services have been cut. 10/19

We looked in-depth at one area where this situation was typical - Rhondda Cynon Taf. For a time, it had one of the highest infection rates in Wales yet its A&E ward was under consideration for closure. Due to aggressive campaigning, it stayed open. 11/19
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Then there are workers in transport, many of whom had to work throughout the pandemic. In August we reported on how Cadiff’s majority black and asian Taxi workforce were being exposed to Covid because they were prevented from fitting protective screens in their cabs. 12/19

“We had to bury [a driver]...Taxi drivers are scared to go back to work - especially old men. They're really concerned that they will catch the virus," @2000jama, a driver and Unite rep, told us. 13/19

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Now workers face another threat, not just from the virus itself but from a pandemic of unemployment as the furlough ends & businesses try to offload the cost of their staff. Workers will pay the price for an economic crisis just as the very richest protect their wealth.14/19

Amazon's Jeff Bezos - who employs workers in Swansea & Newport - has seen his wealth go up by over $20bil in the pandemic. The boss of Ineos & the UKs richest man Jim Radcliffe recently moved his billions to Monaco so he wouldn’t pay tax - money that could help workers. 15/19

There are real class divides within our society but no major political party in Wales is seriously talking about this. Money that could protect people’s livelihoods is being hoarded & used for nothing yet we barely ever hear about it, how much there is and who owns it.16/19

Some workers refuse to accept the logic that the money isn’t there. NHS workers recently took to the streets in Wales to demand a pay rise of 15%. “We've been willing to pay with our lives but they aren't willing to pay us fairly,” a nurse told us. 17/19 bit.ly/2F37G30

In the coming months, more workers may decide to take action and get organised. Talking to a publication like ours and sharing their story is part of that process. We aim to be a voice for these workers & talk about the real issues they face. 18/19

Please follow us on Twitter and support our journalism from just £3 per month here. Thanks for reading!19/19

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