Coronavirus: Nearly 100 Tyson chicken workers test positive for virus

Credit: DaytonDailyNews

Nearly 100 employees at a Tyson chicken plant in Tennessee have tested positive for the coronavirus.

Workers will be required to take their temperatures at the start of their shifts and wear face coverings, CNN reported.

"We're extremely grateful for the work our team members are doing and for the role they play in the critical supply chain that extends from farm to fork," Tyson Foods Senior Vice President Hector Gonzalez told CNN.

The company has expanded workspaces and is sanitizing and deep-cleaning plant production areas, as well as employee locker and break rooms.

Officials in Iowa have asked Tyson Fresh Meats to close its Waterloo pork processing plant amid concerns of spreading the coronavirus, The Associated Press reported.

The company conducted 2,700 tests at the facility over the weekend. Those results are not yet available.

A facility in Columbus Junction where at least 148 employees were infected and two died, has been closed since April 6. The company hoped to reopen it this week.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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