Graphic of the Week
GRAPHIC: COVID-19 death rates in rural communities surpassed urban ones in September
|
In December, small towns had a rate of about 10 deaths a week, according to a USDA analysis.
Coronavirus
‘We need an emergency plan now’: Housing problems persist for Imperial County farmworkers
|
With a history of double-digit unemployment and poor health indicators, Imperial County was among the hardest hit in the state in the early months of COVID-19. Its farmworkers, the backbone of the county’s $4.5 billion agriculture industry, have continued their high-risk work during the pandemic.
Coronavirus
Additional campus COVID complaints show more unsafe, unhealthy and outlandish behavior
|
These were the events among the roughly 200 complaints sent to university officials in the latter part of the fall semester in 2020 at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign.
Coronavirus
OSHA faults pork plant for failing to protect workers from COVID-19, but issues no fines
|
An OSHA inspection into Triumph Foods confirms much of what USA TODAY and the Midwest Center found last year in an investigation of the company.
Coronavirus
DOL watchdog: OSHA’s virtual inspections during pandemic likely led to dangerous workplaces
|
While complaints increased, overall inspections dramatically decreased, according to the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Inspector General.
Coronavirus
Industry lobbying left nursing homes vulnerable in pandemic
|
Even before COVID-19, aides caring for elderly and disabled people in nursing homes often were overworked and underpaid, doing everything from changing linens to helping residents eat to physically rotating them to prevent bed sores.
Graphic of the Week
GRAPHIC: Meatpacking workers still complain to OSHA about COVID-19
|
OSHA received its first complaints about meatpacking plants almost a full year ago, on March 17, 2020. At two plants in North Carolina, people were elbow-to-elbow, with no change in operations, according to OSHA data.
Agribusiness
The CDC recommended states prioritize farmworkers for the COVID-19 vaccine. A few large agricultural states have not.
|
A few states with large agricultural populations have, so far, left farmworkers out of their COVID-19 vaccine rollout.
Wellness on the Farm
Farmers already felt isolated. The COVID-19 pandemic made it worse.
|
The coronavirus pandemic has exacerbated farmers’ feelings of isolation, according to a recent survey from the American Farm Bureau Federation. The percentage who said social isolation affects farmers’ mental health jumped more than 20% in 2020 compared to 2019.
Coronavirus
Ten months into pandemic, Rochelle Foods and Illinois health department still at odds over COVID-19
|
An infected worker allegedly told the plant's manager he was feeling better after his positive test. He told the county health department the opposite.