ORLANDO, Fla. — Rosanny Tejeda is one of 35 current and recently laid off Orlando airport food workers who claim the company they work for had them put their lives at risk to make a paycheck during the coronavirus pandemic.
“Some of my co-workers are still at the airport putting their lives at risk for 10 bucks an hour, so that they can pay their rent or buy food in the middle of this pandemic,” Tejeda, who worked at Starbucks at the airport until last Thursday, said, according in a complaint filed with the U.S. Occupational Health and Safety Administration on Tuesday.
The complaint alleges that their employer, HMSHost, violated OSHA safety standards and failed to mitigate a known hazard in COVID-19, which can cause death or illness to workers.
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HMSHost employs approximately 800 workers to operate 27 food outlets at Orlando International Airport, according to the complaint. The company claims to have 41,000 associates worldwide and annual sales of more than $3.5 billion.
Workers said that HMSHost has no social distancing protocol in place at the airport, and that there has been no training on use of OSHA-recommended personal protective equipment.
The complaint claims that workers were required to attend anti-union meetings in late March after the White House and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention asked people to avoid gatherings larger than 10. Workers said they were crowded into a room in groups larger than 10 sitting less than 6 feet apart.
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“When the history of Orlando’s coronavirus pandemic is written, researchers might well look at these needless meetings as a crucial source of the contagion,” the complaint states.
Workers said their managers didn’t tell them when Transportation Security Administration workers at the airport had tested positive for the disease.
“We heard from the news that TSA agents were getting sick, so even if the managers didn’t say anything, we knew we were in danger," said Abi Colon, who was a server at Outback Steakhouse.
Channel 9 investigative reporter Shannon Butler contacted HMSHost for a response to the workers’ claims but has not heard back. Stay tuned to Channel 9 Eyewitness News for updates.
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