South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem told Fox News last week that '99 per cent' of the Smithfield infections 'wasn't happening inside the facility' but rather inside workers' homes 'because a lot of these folks who work at this plant live in the same community, the same buildings, sometimes in the same apartments.' A Smithfield spokesperson reportedly blamed cultural differences in the workplace for the speed of the virus' spread.
The spokesperson told BuzzFeed News on Monday that it is hard to know 'what could have been done differently' given the plant's 'large immigration population.'
'Living circumstances in certain cultures are different than they are with your traditional American family,' the spokesperson said.
This is a common factor for all of the meat packing plants in the midwest and it also applies to many cities where housing is scarce and very expensive. This is the first article that I have seen that cites this factor as a part of the problem. Governor Noem has figured it out.
“This is a common factor for all of the meat packing plants in the midwest and it also applies to many cities where housing is scarce and very expensive.”
Because owners are paying dirt wages and choose to import immigrants (mainly illegal?) who will work for peanuts, instead of hiring US citizens and legal US residents.
Tucker has highlighted how some midwest small towns have had their demographic character totally changed overnight by these packing-house operators who import tons of cheap labor from other countries.