Workers at Bimbo Bakeries, a factory that manufactures baked goods, are demanding their employer offer additional paid sick leave, hazard pay, and more (Photo by Ankur Singh).

By Ankur Singh

On Friday, March 27, Yvette McCallum woke up at 4:30 a.m. for another 12 hour shift at work.

It was her first day back at her job after a week of medical leave for an underlying health condition that puts her at greater risk of COVID-19.

Her employer, Bimbo Bakeries USA, a factory which manufactures brand name baked goods on 54th Avenue and 16th Street, had received a note from her doctor instructing them to follow the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines and provide McCallum with a mask, frequent breaks to wash her hands, and that she should maintain a distance of six feet from others while working.

But, when she arrived to work that morning her supervisors didn’t have the mask for her.

“I left because I was about to have an anxiety attack,” McCallum said. “I’m around all these people and they don’t have the mask my doctor said I need.”

McCallum went home. Later in the day she got a call from her supervisors saying they got a mask and she can return to work.

“I was a little more calm, but I was worried,” McCallum said. They’re still doing business as usual like this [COVID-19] is not a serious issue.”

Workers at Bimbo Bakeries have accused the company of not doing enough to protect them from the spread of COVID-19. They claim the company has violated several CDC guidelines by failing to adequately sanitize facilities and not enforcing social distancing.

“We are taking heightened precautions at all of our locations, including the Cicero Bakery, during the COVID-19 crisis,” Bimbo Bakeries USA said in a statement.

“We’re following all CDC guidelines and have implemented additional measures to ensure associate safety, including increased social distancing practices like staggering breaks, creating one-chair tables in the break rooms and marking the floor in areas where associates often congregate, like time clocks, to remind them to keep a 6-foot distance. We have also increased the frequency of our sanitation processes and provided additional tools to our sanitation teams. Finally, we have communicated with our associates regularly to ensure they have the information they need to keep themselves and their co-workers safe.”

Many bakery workers, however, say that’s not the case.

“They haven’t done anything,” said Gerardo Mello, a Bimbo Bakery worker.

According to Mello, two Bimbo workers who have been out sick informed their colleagues that they have tested positive for COVID-19. But, when employees who are still working approached their supervisors about it, the workers say management denied it.

“That's what makes it difficult now because there’s no trust in our company anymore,” said Shay Mitchell, another worker. “Especially the African-American workers because we are treated unfairly.”

Dennean Paul, a sanitation worker, has seen some shift in the company’s practices. They’re now required to wear a plastic jump suit and a face mask as they clean, but according to her it hasn’t been enough.

“One day I had to go to security and say, ‘do you know we’re out of sanitizer?’” she recalled.

While Paul’s sanitation team is responsible for cleaning the main floor with the assembly lines, she alleges that Bimbo hasn’t been adequately cleaning the remaining facilities. She’s seen toilet paper and urine left on the bathroom floor for an entire shift.

“I’ve never seen anyone wipe down the time clock. We all touch it to clock in,” she said.

“We’ve been fighting for this for months,” said Mello. According to him Bimbo Bakeries hasn’t been consistently supplying them with napkins or paper towels. “At one point we ran out of toilet paper and soap.”

“They don’t understand how serious it is and the company should have a team in there everyday cleaning it down,” Paul continued. “I’m really scared.”

The workers also claim that Bimbo Bakeries hasn’t been practicing social distancing protocols.

“In the break room you have a mass group of 50-75 people at one time,” said McCallum.

Paul says even though the company has placed ‘X’s’ and signs on the floors and tables to indicate to employees where they should stand and sit, they do nothing to enforce it.

“In the locker room we’re shoulder by shoulder. When we’re washing our hands before entering we’re shoulder by shoulder. When we’re on the [assembly] lines we’re shoulder by shoulder,” Paul said. “I think they did what they did to make it look like they’re enforcing the virus code.”

Many of the workers are organizing with a group called Black Workers Matter and have started a petition to push their demands, which includes an increase in paid sick days, hazard pay, and a suspension of “points” for absences due to illness.

The Town Investigates

Workers also filed a complaint with the Town of Cicero.

“The Town has been investigating the complaint,” said Town of Cicero spokesperson Ray Hanania. “Bimbo Bakery has been following all procedures and has a very strict policy involving cleanliness, cleaning and sanitizing.”

“We are doing everything in our power to respond to every complaint,” said Ismael Vargas, the Town’s Business License director. “People can call the town and we’ll go out right away.”

According to Vargas the town has been receiving calls “left and right” from people complaining that area businesses are not following CDC guidelines and have been doing regular inspections with the Town’s Health Department, including at Bimbo Bakeries.

Vargas claims to have visited Bimbo Bakeries 3 times, done walk-throughs and spoken to management and employees.

Workers like Mello aren’t quite satisfied with the Town’s inspections and don’t think they are thorough enough. “They [the Town] don't talk to nobody,” Mello said. “They only talk to management. If they talk to workers they’ll hear different things.”

Vargas denies the allegation.

“I’m worried about myself, my family and my coworkers,” Mello said. “I don’t want to get the virus and spread it to my family.”

“They [Management] threaten if you don't go to work you’re going to get fired. That’s the threat. So they [workers] continue to go to work. They’re afraid to lose their job.”

“People are scared,” said Mitchell. “But they need their job so a lot of people don’t know what to do.”