Chairwoman Stabenow on the House Oversight Report that the Trump Administration Helped the Meatpacking Industry Block Pandemic Worker Protections

WASHINGTON – Today, Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), Chairwoman of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, issued a statement on the House Oversight Committee’s Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis report: How the Trump Administration Helped the Meatpacking Industry Block Pandemic Worker Protections.

“It is clear from the House Oversight Subcommittee report that the Trump Administration chose to prioritize the profits of big companies over the safety of their workers at the height of the pandemic. This is extremely concerning – and further evidence of the Trump Administration’s mismanagement of USDA and the pandemic,” said Senator Stabenow. “In May 2020 as Ranking Member of the Agriculture Committee, I led my Democratic colleagues in speaking out and expressing alarm about the risks of prematurely reopening plants without protecting workers. In 2021 as Chair of the Agriculture Committee, I led the effort to fund worker safety protections in the American Rescue Plan Act – which President Biden and his USDA strongly supported and are now implementing.”

Senator Stabenow urged the Trump Administration to protect workers in the food supply chain on multiple occasions:

• April 20, 2020: Senate Democrats Urge Trump Administration to Protect Food Supply, Essential Workers During COVID-19 Crisis.
• April 28, 2020: Ranking Member Stabenow Statement on President Trump’s Plan to Keep Meatpacking Plants Open.
• May 15, 2020: As the Trump Administration Pressures Meat Processing Plants to Open, Senators Urge Action to Ensure Worker Safety.

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