The lawsuit was filed against Tyson Foods by the family of Pwar Gay, a woman who worked as a meat-cutter at the Tyson meat packing plant in Amarillo, Texas, for 8 years.
The city of Amarillo issued a stay-at-home order on April 1 to slow the spread of COVID-19, but she continued to work at the plant.
During the pandemic, she slipped and fell and hurt her knees on the job at Tyson. Following the injury, Tyson sent her to the company clinic for first aid treatment. She was sent back to work.
Though she was suffering from pain and swelling, she was not allowed to go home to rest or seek medical attention because Tyson was short-staffed.
Tragically, after continuing to work on her injured leg, she was infected with COVID-19. Her knee was “extremely swollen and painful” and she started having difficulty breathing due to the COVID-19 infection.
She was hospitalized for several weeks as a result of the combination of her knee injury and COVID-19, which later proved to be fatal.
At least 4,500 Tyson employees have been infected with COVID-19, and at least 18 have died, according to the lawsuit.
Tyson is accused of failing to provide workers with adequate personal protective equipment (PPE) or social distancing to avoid coronavirus. Furthermore, the lawsuit accuses Tyson of “malicious and grossly negligent conduct” and “callous disregard for the safety” of workers.
The lawsuit was filed by her husband, four children, and a representative for her estate.
The lawsuit (PDF) was filed on May 15, 2020 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas (Amarillo Division) — Case No. 2:20-cv-00125-Z.
Source: Amarillo family seeks compensation, answers for Tyson employee COVID-19 death