The disregard of safety for essential workers

Photo taken from NPR

Essential workers were praised for their work during COVID-19 pandemic, but some faced with unsafe working conditions and being lied to by their higher-ups. In "COVID's Hidden Toll," a documentary film written, directed, and produced by Daffodil Altan and Andres Cediél, details just this, but more specifically, workers based in the agricultural industry.

The importance of this documentary is unmeasurable. Everyone understood the essential risk workers put themselves through every time they came into their job. Still, the working conditions and lack of safety protocols displayed in the documentary for farmers, harvesters, and meatpackers were illegal and unnecessary. Bosses would lie about the risk of infection in the workplace, saying that inside was safer than the outside. After a worker was infected with the virus, the employees were uncertain about whether they should return to work or not for obvious reasons. An HR executive made a false statement, claiming they were safe because the contaminated person had left and the virus only lingers for 4 hours. He then proceeded to say that they would be fired if they decided not to work. These atrocious acts are straight-up illegal, as well as inhumane.

Farmers are already paid low wages on top of an unsafe workspace. A worker interviewed in the documentary claimed that even if she could get her hands on a face mask - which was in high demand during this film - she wouldn't be able to afford it because of the price. The price of face masks has soared since the pandemic, with some stores selling a 20-pack of masks for $19.99. 

A worker in the lettuce fields claimed that all workers would get on a bus with no separation whatsoever. He even said that some people on the bus would be showing symptoms. A worker in the meatpacking industry said that people would ask before going to work if they had any symptoms, and even when they said yes, they still have to work. This company already had a bad reputation due to animal abuse.

There was a lot of uncertainty in people's lives during the start of the pandemic, and companies took advantage of that, especially the food industry. This documentary is so important; it sheds light on the workers and the risks they take, and the lack of safety protocols from their companies.