Calls for Moy Park management to provide Covid-19 tests for employees

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A union has demanded management at Moy Park in Portadown and Dungannon provide tests for COVID-19 amid claims of staff are working in fear of their lives.

It follows the death of a female employee in her 50s who worked at the Dungannon plant.

Unite the Union has called on management to introduce testing immediately amid fears for the safety of their members.

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Sean McKeever, Regional Officer for Unite, claimed Moy Park bosses have refused to provide Covid-19 testing to their workforce.

Moy Park Portadown (photo courtesy of Google)Moy Park Portadown (photo courtesy of Google)
Moy Park Portadown (photo courtesy of Google) | Other 3rd Party

However, this was disputed by Moy Park management who said they had ‘been supporting and facilitating the testing of colleagues and their household members through the local test centres since they opened’.

Mr McKeever said: “Following our revelation that a Moy Park worker sadly died of this virus, we are hearing of increasing reports of workers self-isolating with symptoms at both Dungannon and Portadown sites. Meatpacking workers stand for hours in close proximity in cold conditions - this is an implicitly high-risk sector - it is no accident that we’ve seen huge outbreaks across the USA, Brazil and Canada already.

“Management claim that they are fulfilling the minimalist PHA guidelines but it is clear that these are completely inadequate to protect meatpacking workers. Doing the bare minimum when it comes to infection control is not good enough. Employers have a duty to keep their employees safe which is enshrined in law. In the face of total and continued inaction by Stormont Ministers on this crisis in the meatpacking sector, workers will have to organise to defend themselves.

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“The refusal of bosses to provide workforce testing... is a simply not good enough. This cannot be about cost – you cannot put a price on workers’ health and well-being. The bosses had better recognise that when workers get organised, the real power in meatpacking is on the shop-floor - health must be put before profit.”

Mr McKeever added: “Moy Park is Northern Ireland’s largest private sector business - a hugely successful company - but that success has been built on the backs of their workforce. It’s latest accounts show that sales topped £1.6 billion - an increase of four percent on the previous year - while operating profits were up to £72 million. The top paid Director received more than £2.6 million in terms of pay and pension contributions.

“These figures confirm that Moy Park doesn’t need to cut corners. With Bombardier, the second biggest company in Northern Ireland, facilitating testing of workers and their family members when requested, employees at Moy Park are asking why they are being treated as second-class by their employer.”

A Moy Park spokesperson said: “We strictly follow all government guidelines on testing to protect our team members. We too have been supporting and facilitating the testing of colleagues and their household members through the local test centres since they opened.

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“We will continue to actively engage with all the key government agencies, in particular the PHA, to understand whether additional testing would be recommended.

“As we have consistently stated, the health, wellbeing and safety of our Moy Park team members is always our most important consideration. We have already invested over £2 million in safety measures for our team members and will continue to invest in accurate and timely, scientifically proven government approved approaches to tackle this pandemic.”

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