Beginning in early March, Perdue has taken the following steps to create additional layers of safety for our associates:

• We have proactively increased our stringent cleaning and sanitation protocols.
• Where social distancing isn’t possible in our production facilities, we are rolling out temporary installations of dividers between our associates on production lines. The design of these partitions is such that they can be easily customized and installed in many different applications throughout our production facilities where needed. The stainless elements are welded versus bolted to minimize potential pathogen harborage points. Made using either plexiglass or stretched trash bags, the dividers will be cleaned or replaced, respectively, between every shift.
• Utilizing infrared non-contact temperature devices, everyone entering a production facility must have their temperature taken each day by trained testers. Anyone with a temperature at or above applicable health department guidelines will be directed to that facility’s onsite Wellness Center, which is always available free of charge to our associates, for further screening and instruction.
• We are rolling out a disposable mask program which will be available at all production facilities by the end of this week.
• We have extended the hours of many of our onsite Wellness Centers for the foreseeable future, which are staffed with local healthcare providers and are available to all associates and their families free of charge. Some Wellness Center locations are accessible to Perdue associates only in accordance with Good Manufacturing Practices that prohibit outside guests from entering the building. Dependents of associates who are unable to visit a Wellness Center can talk directly with a doctor by using telehealth services that are available through Perdue’s healthcare provider at no cost. Additionally, associates and their family members have access to the company’s Employee Assistance Program which provides a variety of confidential services including professional counselors and work/life specialists 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
• Associates are encouraged to stay home if they are not feeling well or think they might have been exposed to the virus.
  
  

Perdue is aware that this pandemic is creating stress for many of our associates and their families beyond the immediate health concerns. That is why, in addition to additional safety precautions in our facilities, Perdue has taken steps to increase compensation for our employees and create flexibilities in our leave policies. For example:

• We have waived the 5-day waiting period of short-term disability for any associate who contracts COVID-19, so that he or she can receive immediate benefits.
• All hourly associates have received a $1-per-hour pay raise and all Piece Rate associates (such as Perdue Truck Drivers) a $40-per-week pay increase. These temporary increases will be in effect March 23 to May 31, 2020.
• We are fully funding our annual profit-sharing Associate Bonus Program and paying it to eligible associates two months early. Normally, associates must be employed with us on the first day of our Fiscal Year (on or around April 1, 2019) to be eligible for this bonus, but we have adjusted this criterion to include applicable associates hired prior to February 1, 2020.
• Because this pandemic has caused many of our associates to cancel their vacation or personal time off (PTO), we have temporarily removed the PTO accrual maximum for all associates until June 1, 2020. This will allow associates to continue accruing PTO weekly/biweekly past the maximum amount, and they will have until June 1, 2021 to utilize the days over their PTO maximum.
• We are providing our production associates with chicken products to take home for themselves and their families.

COVID-19 and Food Safety

Per the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), COVID-19 is not known to be a foodborne pathogen. As the agency has stated, “because of poor survivability of these coronaviruses on surfaces, there is likely very low risk of spread from food products or packaging that are shipped over a period of days or weeks at ambient, refrigerated, or frozen temperatures.” Perdue continues to follow strict preventive safety and sanitation standards in all our facilities. In addition, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food Safety and Inspection Service continues to inspect all Perdue Farms products, which are made with the highest standards of safety and quality, as well as our production facilities, which are fully sanitized every 24 hours at minimum.

Additional resources from federal food safety agencies:

• U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Food Safety and Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)
• U.S. Food and Drug Administration: Food Safety and Availability During the Coronavirus Pandemic
• U.S. Department of Agriculture: Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Frequently Asked Questions