outbreak News

North Carolina Restaurant Owners, Workers Clash Over COVID Safety

ASHEVILLE, N.C. (AP) — Restaurant owners, who have seen their capacity and hours limited by government entities, are struggling to keep the doors open, while their staff, often in a very public-facing position, try to stay both employed and healthy. …

Tyson Accused of Misleading Interpreters at Virus-Hit Plant

Tyson Foods Inc. is accused of giving incorrect information to interpreters during a Covid-19 outbreak that infected more than a third of workers at a pork plant in Waterloo, Iowa. Plant management directed interpreters to tell the sizable non-English-speaking workforce …

OSHA Cites Smithfield Foods For Failing to Protect Workers From Coronavirus

CHICAGO, Sept 10 — The U.S. Labor Department said on Thursday it cited Smithfield Foods for failing to protect employees from the coronavirus, making it the first major meatpacker to face a fine after outbreaks at slaughterhouses infected thousands of …

Fires Roil California’s Virus Fight Just as Outbreak Was Easing

Just as California appeared to be turning a corner in its fight against the coronavirus, raging wildfires threaten to worsen the outbreak. Blazes that rank among the largest in state history have sent thousands of residents fleeing to evacuation centers …

Outbreak at Iowa Pork Plant Was Larger Than State Reported

IOWA CITY, Iowa — The first confirmed coronavirus outbreak at an Iowa meatpacking plant was far more severe than previously known, with more than twice as many workers becoming infected than the state Department of Public Health told the public, …

COVID-19 Immunity Proposal Flounders in Tennessee

NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Just a few weeks ago, Tennessee looked like a sure bet to become the latest state to protect businesses and other organizations from lawsuits by people impacted by the coronavirus in the push to reopen the economy. …

Some Disneyland Workers Protest Reopening Plans Amid Pandemic

ANAHEIM, Calif. — Workers at California’s Disneyland Resort protested from their cars on Saturday, arguing that the Walt Disney Co has not agreed to adequate protections for employees when the destination reopens to the public amid a pandemic. The company …

Los Angeles Union, Joined by ‘Pandemic Pig,’ Demands Meatpacking Plant Closure

LOS ANGELES — The union representing workers at a meatpacking plant near Los Angeles where at least 153 employees have come down with COVID-19 called on Thursday for the plant’s immediate closure, saying measures to control the outbreak were not …

M&A Legend Martin Lipton Warns of Coming Virus Lawsuit Wave

A push by Republicans in Congress to create stronger liability protections for businesses hammered by the Covid-19 virus won’t completely curb lawsuits over injuries and losses caused by the pandemic, famed M&A litigator Martin Lipton said. Speaking to the Economic …

Pandemic Stands to Complicate Potentially Bad Fire Season

DURANGO, Colo. — As if Southwest Colorado’s extreme drought wasn’t enough to raise concerns about a potentially destructive wildfire season, the added complications of the coronavirus have only fueled that anxiety. The COVID-19 outbreak demands people isolate as much as …