TOLEDO, Ohio — On-site coronavirus testing will now be available to Jeep workers.
This on-site testing is a win, according to UAW Local 12 president Bruce Baumhower.
It was also announced in this plan to hire more employees, but in the meantime, some plant workers tell me they still have concerns.
"We feel like nobody cares about us and we're being told you come to work every day or you're going to get fired," a Jeep employee said.
With thousands of people in and out of the Toledo Jeep plant every day.. some employees are concerned not enough is being done to prevent possible exposure to contracting COVID-19.
"I guess the major concern is just the number of people overlapping at all times, I mean basically there's no way to social distance we're working 6 or 7 day weeks not caring if second shift overlaps with first shift," a Jeep employee said.
While Jeep's parent company confirms they have had positive cases, it sent this statement: "FCA continues to make the health and safety of its employees a top priority. Since restarting our operations, we have not had any spread of the virus in our plants. Any suggestion to the contrary is completely untrue."
They sent a statement from May talking about precautions that have been put in place including hand and workspace sanitizers, masks and required health questionnaires before employees can come in the building.
"We do have 10 minutes to sanitize our work station each morning with rubbing alcohol. If that's what the CDC has approved then great, but a lot of times, those bottles are empty."
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Heat-sensing cameras that can detect when someone who walks by has a fever are also at the entrances, but one employee said they need to be monitored by an employee
"We have them, but are they manned all the time? No," a Jeep employee said.
Both employees who spoke to WTOL said their number one concern is not knowing if the people they're working around have been exposed and that they usually don't find out until way after the possible exposure.
"The problem is the people being exposed are not being considered a risk. So even if they've been exposed at home, they know for an absolute fact they've been exposed, once at work they get confirmation of this the people they've been working with all day long are not considered exposed," a Jeep employee said.
With the union's announcement that they've negotiated on-site testing, this issue may begin to dissipate, but another concern is the limitations on their sick time because of staffing levels.
"I'm only allowed to use them Tuesday Wednesday Thursday. I'm not allowed Monday, Friday, Saturday,' a Jeep employee said.
The union is negotiating with the company and says they should be hiring more part and full-time employees.
The health department says they have been to Jeep multiple times without any issues and will continue working with them.