Make the Road, which organized the protest, said nearly 50 employees have spoken with them to raise concerns about a culture of retaliation and lack of COVID-19 safety measures.
Workers said their temperatures are taken when they arrive, and they wear masks. But on the assembly line there is no social distancing, and no time for extra cleaning.
“The pandemic changed nothing. Everything continued like it was,” said a current worker who asked to be identified as Luisa, not her real name, out of fear of retaliation.
They also say at least 15 colleagues have tested positive, but that hasn’t been communicated with employees directly.
Ashley Furniture confirmed there have been positive cases, but denied mishandling them. “We have no reported cases where transmission is believed to have occurred while working at our facility,” said Bawek. “Out of caution, we have nonetheless asked employees who may have previously come in close contact with these associates, or are symptomatic, to quarantine at home.”
Juan, who asked that only his first name be used, said he was fired for taking sick days he earned. Luisa said such recent firings discourage people who feel sick from taking time off, and in turn make all workers fearful that they are at risk.
“I want them to change, to take more consideration with everything that’s happening, and to think more about their employees,” she said.
At least one employee complaint seemed to be based on a misunderstanding. Workers and Make the Road expressed concerns that work inside the building didn’t completely pause following Gov. Wolf’s shutdown order. The production area did close, but the warehouse did not, said Juan. Per the state’s list of essential business categories, furniture manufacturing was supposed to pause during the order, but online retail, warehousing and storage could continue.
“Ashley fully complied with the Governor’s orders, and any assertions to the contrary are based on an incorrect understanding of the applicable mandates,” said Bawek.