Betting On Their Lives: Meatpacker Where 6 Died Suspends Managers

ACROSS AMERICA — Meat processing giant Tyson Foods this week said it suspended managers at its largest pork plant in Waterloo, Iowa, amid claims the managers “organized a cash buy-in, winner-take-all betting pool" last spring to wager on how many employees would test positive for the COVID-19 virus.

The disturbing allegation comes as Tyson faces legal backlash over a spring outbreak that ultimately infected more than 1,000 of the Waterloo plant's 2,800 workers, killing at least six and sending many others to the hospital.

The claims were discovered through interviews conducted by the legal team of Mel Orchard, who represents the estates of several workers killed by the virus.

Dean Banks, president and CEO of Tyson, said the accused managers have been suspended without pay. Banks also said he was "extremely upset by the allegations" and that the company has retained a law firm to conduct its own investigation.

At the time of the alleged betting, Tyson was bucking pressure from local officials to shut down the plant as a safety precaution. The company argued that the plant, which processes nearly 20,000 hogs per day, was a vital market for farmers and critical to the nation's meat supply.

Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds, who allowed Tyson to keep the plant open and praised its executives for taking voluntary safety measures, did not answer directly Thursday when The Associated Press asked whether her trust in the company was misplaced.

The meatpacking industry has been among the hardest hit by the coronavirus pandemic. By September, long before the most recent spike in cases, more than 42,500 workers at meatpacking plants had contracted the coronavirus, and at least 203 had died.

The Latest

The United States set another daily case record on Friday, recording more than 196,000 new cases in a single day. The country is also expected to surpass 12 million total cases on Saturday, just six days after reaching 11 million.

In total, this latest surge in infections has added nearly 4 million cases over the course of a single month.

So far, more than 254,000 people in the United States have died of COVID-19, surpassing the White House's worst predictions from the spring.

As cases run rampant, drugmaker Pfizer on Friday said it submitted an application to the Food and Drug Administration for emergency approval of its coronavirus vaccine, the New York Times reported.

If approved, the vaccine could reach its first American recipients by the middle of December.

Meanwhile, Republican and Democratic governors from several Midwestern states issued a joint video this weekend urging people to say home for Thanksgiving and wear masks to slow the spread of the virus until a vaccine is widely available.

Even South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, who refuses to issue a mask mandate, suggested smaller gatherings “may be smarter this year," The Associated Press reported.

On Friday, reports confirmed that Donald Trump Jr., the eldest child of President Donald Trump, has been infected with the coronavirus.

The 42-year-old Trump learned his diagnosis earlier this week and remains asymptomatic, according to spokesperson granted anonymity by The AP to discuss private medical information. The reports said he is isolating at a private cabin, where he is following the recommended guidelines for COVID-19, the disease caused by the virus, the spokesperson said.

On Friday, the Trump administration came under fire by President-elect Joe Biden’s transition team for its decision to end several emergency lending programs, run jointly by the U.S. Treasury and Federal Reserve.

Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin has defended his decision to end the programs, including the Main Street Lending Program and the municipal liquidity facility, by saying the funding should be redirected toward more distressed parts of the U.S. economy.

Biden's camp blasted the decision as "deeply irresponsible” to end support for struggling small businesses, according to The Washington Post.

On Thursday, clinical trials for another vaccine candidate being developed by AstraZeneca and the University of Oxford showed the vaccine produced a similar immune response when tested in both older and younger adults.

Certain vaccines, including those that protect against some viruses that cause the seasonal flu, can be less effective for older adults, the Times reported.

As cases surge, U.S. states continue to put together a patchwork response in lieu of a unified national plan.

In Illinois, residents received what once might have been considered an apocalyptic warning on their phones Friday evening: “Effective today, all of Illinois enters Tier 3 Mitigation. Work from home when possible, avoid unnecessary travel, and celebrate the holidays virtually with extended family.”

California is the latest to issue an overnight curfew, a measure more often imposed to calm public unrest than for the sake of public health.

Cities are also imposing curfews at a local level. Pueblo, Coloroado, and Miami-Dade County, Florida, are among them. New York and Chicago, have shut down bars and restaurants at 10 p.m.

Saturday's Numbers

At least 1,898 new coronavirus deaths and 196,473 new cases were reported in the United States on Friday, according to a Washington Post database. Over the past seven days, the United States has seen a 15.9 percent increase in cases and averaged more than 164,000 cases each day.

As of Saturday, 45 states and Puerto Rico remained above the positive testing rate recommended by the World Health Organization to safely reopen. To safely reopen, the WHO recommends states remain at 5 percent or lower for at least 14 days.

More than 11.9 million people in the United States had tested positive for the coronavirus as of Saturday morning, and more than 254,400 have died, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University.

Stay up to date on the latest coronavirus news via The New York Times or Washington Post.

Read More From Across America:

• National Zoo, Smithsonian Museums To Close Due To Coronavirus
• NJ May Get First Coronavirus Vaccines By Christmas
  
• NJ Nurses Fear 'Speeding Train' Of Coronavirus Cases, Union Says
  
• Coronavirus CT: Lamont Issues Thanksgiving Gathering Guidance
• MA Schools, Districts Report 652 New Coronavirus Cases
  
• More Than 1 Million Opt In To MD COVID Alert Notifications
  
• Wisconsin Mask Mandate Formally Extended
  
• De Blasio Projects NYC 'Orange Zone' Closures Start In December
  
• Michigan Reports Another Single-Day Coronavirus Record Friday
  
• Most In IL Plan Thanksgiving Within Households: Patch Survey
  
• California Issues Curfew Order For Purple Tier Counties
• New Hampshire Implements Mask, Face Covering Order Friday
• 2-Week 'Pause' Coming To RI; Full Lockdown Could Follow
• Rutgers Expert: 5 Thanksgiving Safety Tips For College Families
• Joining Family For Thanksgiving? Then 'Pseudo-Quarantine' Now