SSN Commentary

US Food Workers Are In Danger. That Threatens All Of Us

Policy field

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University of California-Berkeley

Originally published as: Vera L. Chang and Seth M. Holmes, "US Food Workers Are In Danger. That Threatens All Of Us" The Guardian, April 14, 2020.

Mike Pence called US farm and other food workers “heroic Americans” last week for doing “vital” work amid the coronavirus pandemic and said the government would “work tirelessly” to ensure their workplace safety.

Earlier in the month, the Department of Homeland Security had classified workers pulling onions, collecting eggs, processing beef and others as essential”, and part of the “critical infrastructure workforce” that has a “special responsibility to maintain [a] normal work schedule”.