A workers’ rights group is asking the state of Michigan to step up protections for workers who may be exposed to COVID-19. That's after dozens of people brought in to clean up flood damage in Midland tested positive for the virus.
The workers were brought in from Florida and Texas after the May 19 flood. Approximately 50 tested positive while in Michigan. It’s unclear how many of the COVID-19 positive workers may have been exposed before coming to Michigan.
Activists claim the workers were forced to work without sufficient personal protective gear and live in crowded hotel rooms.
“This is really a story of what happens when workers are on the front lines facing all of the risk and employers take none of the responsibility,” says Saket Soni, the director of Resilience Force.
A spokeswoman for Governor Gretchen Whitmer says they are reviewing a letter from the group asking for increased protections for at-risk workers.
