{"id":192599,"date":"2021-06-05T16:15:39","date_gmt":"2021-06-05T16:15:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/radiofree.asia\/?guid=ca8c92ee96203ecaed85500df7b40ea2"},"modified":"2021-06-05T16:15:39","modified_gmt":"2021-06-05T16:15:39","slug":"california-is-still-averaging-about-34-new-covid-outbreaks-in-workplaces-per-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/2021\/06\/05\/california-is-still-averaging-about-34-new-covid-outbreaks-in-workplaces-per-day\/","title":{"rendered":"California Is Still Averaging About 34 New COVID Outbreaks in Workplaces Per Day"},"content":{"rendered":"<a href=\"https:\/\/truthout.org\/articles\/california-is-still-averaging-about-34-new-covid-outbreaks-in-workplaces-per-day\/\"><img width=\"200\" height=\"133\" src=\"https:\/\/truthout.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/GettyImages-1223872520-200x133.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"As businesses reopen, workplace outbreaks and infections are diminishing, but at an agonizingly slow rate.\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/truthout.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/GettyImages-1223872520-200x133.jpg 200w, https:\/\/truthout.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/GettyImages-1223872520-400x267.jpg 400w, https:\/\/truthout.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/GettyImages-1223872520-1200x801.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/truthout.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/GettyImages-1223872520-800x534.jpg 800w, https:\/\/truthout.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/GettyImages-1223872520-1536x1025.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/truthout.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/GettyImages-1223872520-2048x1367.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/truthout.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/GettyImages-1223872520-2400x1601.jpg 2400w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><\/a><aside class=\"introtext\">This article was originally published at <a href=\"https:\/\/labornotes.org\/blogs\/2021\/06\/california-continues-record-dozens-workplace-covid-outbreaks-every-day\"><em>Labor Notes<\/em><\/a>.<\/aside>\n<p>Foster Farms was fined $181,500 on May 24, 2021 by the California Division of Occupational Health and Safety (Cal\/OSHA) for failing to protect workers from Covid-19 at its Livingston poultry plant and distribution center near Fresno, and for failing to report all infections. At least eight Foster Farms workers died from Covid-19.<\/p>\n<p>The <i><a href=\"https:\/\/www.latimes.com\/california\/story\/2021-05-25\/cal-osha-covid-fines-foster-farms\">Los Angeles Times<\/a><\/i> called these fines \u201cmassive.\u201d The <i><a href=\"https:\/\/www.fresnobee.com\/news\/coronavirus\/article251653243.html\">Fresno Bee<\/a><\/i> called it \u201cone of the steepest citations\u201d Cal\/OSHA has issued during the pandemic.<\/p>\n<p>But a little math tells you that if eight workers died, Foster Farms is paying a fine of about $22,700 per body. If more than eight workers died, those lives are costing Foster Farms even less per body. Is that all that a worker\u2019s life is worth in California?<\/p>\n<p>Foster Farms workers are mostly Latino and Punjabi Sikh. Deep Singh, the head of the non-profit Jakara Movement that works with the Punjabi Sikh community, called these fines \u201ca slap on the wrist.\u201d Apparently Cal\/OSHA and the <i>Los Angeles Times<\/i> put a different valuation on workers\u2019 lives.<\/p>\n<p>In yet another sign of the times, Cal\/OSHA issued an additional $111,200 worth of fines on four \u201cstaffing companies\u201d for Foster Farms. Subcontracting saves Foster Farms money, and allows them to shift the blame and avoid responsibility for their killing ways.<\/p>\n<p>Of course Foster Farms and their \u201cstaffing companies\u201d are expected to appeal these fines. Who knows how much they will actually end up paying.<\/p>\n<p>The total number of deaths in the U.S. from Covid-19 is fast approaching 600,000. That is more than ten times the number of US soldiers who died in the Vietnam War. Currently, something on the order of 500 people are dying in the U.S. from Covid-19 every day. That is about how many U.S. soldiers were dying every week at the height of the Vietnam War.<\/p>\n<p>But for most of the corporate media those 500 or so deaths are just background noise now, an inconvenient fact that the media wants us to forget, so as not to distract us from the reopening and from getting our profit-driven economy back on track. Nothing much to scream home about\u2014unless of course one of those deaths is in <i>your<\/i> home.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Or in your workplace.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) continues to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdph.ca.gov\/Programs\/CID\/DCDC\/Pages\/COVID-19\/COVID-19-Outbreak-Data.aspx\">post data<\/a> about workplace outbreaks in the Golden State (that have been reported to CDPH), and the story is not pretty.<\/p>\n<p>The latest CDPH postings list 1,200 new workplace outbreaks during the five weeks between April 13 and May 17, 2021. Outbreaks are defined as three or more cases of Covid-19 at a worksite within a 14-day period. Those 1,200 new workplace outbreaks include 14,145 new cases.<\/p>\n<p>This works out to an average of about 34 new workplace outbreaks and 404 new workplace cases per day, over a five-week period.<\/p>\n<p>That compares to 1,546 new workplace outbreaks and 21,156 new cases reported during the preceding six weeks between March 1 and April 12 \u2014 an average of about 36 new workplace outbreaks and 503 new workplace cases per day.<\/p>\n<p>Workplace outbreaks and infections are diminishing, but at an agonizingly slow rate. That is cold comfort if you work in one of the thousands of workplaces that have seen recent outbreaks.<\/p>\n<p>Some particulars from the April 13 through May 17 numbers:<\/p>\n<p><strong>Health Care &amp; Social Assistance<\/strong><br \/><i>460 new outbreaks, 4,592 new cases<\/i><br \/>The biggest outbreaks in health care &amp; social assistance include:<br \/>Hospitals<br \/>Nursing care facilities<br \/>Residential care facilities<br \/>Community services, including homeless shelters<br \/>Child day care services<\/p>\n<p><strong>Manufacturing<\/strong><br \/><i>121 new outbreaks, 2,706 new cases<\/i><br \/>The biggest outbreaks in manufacturing include:<br \/>Animal slaughtering &amp; processing<br \/>Bakeries &amp; tortillas<br \/>Carpet &amp; rug mills<br \/>Textile product mills<br \/>Cut &amp; sew apparel<br \/>Leather tanning &amp; finishing<br \/>Paperboard containers<br \/>Paper &amp; pulp products<br \/>Printing &amp; related support<br \/>Petroleum refining<br \/>Pharmaceuticals &amp; medicines<br \/>Plastics products<br \/>Iron &amp; steel mills<br \/>Nonferrous metal production &amp; processing<br \/>Metal forgings &amp; stampings<br \/>Cutlery &amp; hand tools<br \/>Machine shops<br \/>Fabricated metal products<br \/>Machinery manufacturing<br \/>Electric light &amp; electrical equipment<br \/>Motor vehicles &amp; equipment<br \/>Aircraft &amp; parts<br \/>Aerospace products &amp; parts<br \/>Furniture<br \/>Medical equipment &amp; supplies<\/p>\n<p><strong>Educational Services<\/strong><br \/><i>120 new outbreaks, 753 new cases<\/i><br \/>The biggest outbreaks in educational services include:<br \/>Elementary &amp; secondary schools<br \/>Universities, colleges, junior colleges &amp; professional schools<\/p>\n<p><strong>Retail trade<\/strong><br \/><i>108 new outbreaks, 1,073 new cases<\/i><br \/>The biggest outbreaks in retail trade include:<br \/>Automobile dealers<br \/>Electronic stores<br \/>Building material &amp; supplies<br \/>Grocery stores<br \/>Department stores<\/p>\n<p><strong>Public Safety, including Police, Fire &amp; Correctional Institutions<\/strong><br \/><i>91 new outbreaks, 1,012 new cases<\/i><\/p>\n<p><strong>Accommodation &amp; Food Services<\/strong><br \/><i>70 new outbreaks, 425 new cases<\/i><br \/>The biggest outbreaks in accommodation &amp; food services include:<br \/>Traveler accommodation (hotels)<br \/>Restaurants &amp; other food services<\/p>\n<p><strong>Transportation &amp; Warehousing<\/strong><br \/><i>64 new outbreaks, 1,957 new cases<\/i><br \/>The biggest outbreaks in transportation &amp; warehousing include:<br \/>Air transportation<br \/>Truck transportation<br \/>Bus service &amp; urban transit<br \/>Couriers &amp; messengers<br \/>Warehousing &amp; storage<\/p>\n<p><strong>Construction<\/strong><br \/><i>36 new outbreaks, 400 new cases<\/i><\/p>\n<p><strong>Wholesale trade<\/strong><br \/><i>23 new outbreaks, 312 new cases<\/i><br \/>The biggest outbreaks in wholesale merchants include:<br \/>furniture &amp; home furnishings<br \/>apparel, piece goods &amp; notions<br \/>grocery &amp; related products<\/p>\n<p><strong>Real Estate &amp; Rental &amp; Leasing<\/strong><br \/><i>17 new outbreaks, 95 new cases<\/i><\/p>\n<p><strong>Religious Organizations<\/strong><br \/><i>12 new outbreaks, 108 new cases<\/i><\/p>\n<p>CDPH does not link these workplace outbreaks and infections to hospitalizations or deaths. But one can safely assume that Foster Farms is not alone on the killing floor.<\/p>\n<p><i>Marc Norton\u2019s website is at <a href=\"https:\/\/marcnortononline.wordpress.com\/\">https:\/\/MarcNortonOnline.wordpress.com<\/a>. A version of this piece was originally published at <a href=\"https:\/\/48hills.org\/\">48 Hills<\/a>.<\/i><\/p>\n\n<p class=\"syndicated-attribution\">This post was originally published on <a href=\"https:\/\/truthout.org\/articles\/california-is-still-averaging-about-34-new-covid-outbreaks-in-workplaces-per-day\/\">Latest \u2013 Truthout<\/a>. <\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/truthout.org\/articles\/california-is-still-averaging-about-34-new-covid-outbreaks-in-workplaces-per-day\/\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"200\" height=\"133\" src=\"https:\/\/truthout.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/GettyImages-1223872520-200x133.jpg\" class=\"attachment-thumbnail size-thumbnail wp-post-image\" alt=\"As businesses reopen, workplace outbreaks and infections are diminishing, but at an agonizingly slow rate.\" loading=\"lazy\"><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"entry-summary\">As businesses reopen, workplace outbreaks and infections are diminishing, but at an agonizingly slow rate.<\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":416,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28177,338,304,28178,4721,4084,28179],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/192599"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/416"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=192599"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/192599\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":192600,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/192599\/revisions\/192600"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=192599"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=192599"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radiofree.asia\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=192599"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}