Worker safety continues to be the top focus as the packing and shipping of early-ripening Premier Honeycrisp apples is gearing up at Gardners, Pa.-based Rice Fruit Co.
As Labor Day arrives (Sept. 7), the company will have 200 workers receiving, storing, packing and shipping the 2020 apple crop, according to a news release. Safeguards are in place to protect workers from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Among the worker safety precautions employed, the release said all onsite employees complete a health questionnaire before they start their shifts.
Forklift drivers have assigned equipment and the shipping and receiving office has plexiglass barriers.
On the packinghouse floor, at least six feet separates work stations and workers have staggered arrivals, departures and breaks.
Masks and other protective equipment are supplied by the company, and common touch areas are sanitized regularly. Hand sanitizer dispensers are placed throughout the facility, and additional wash stations were installed to prevent crowding and improve hand washing processes, according to the release.
While many office workers have been able to work remotely, those who do come to the office are protected by barriers and air purifiers. All employees must wear masks except when eating or drinking. An “essential business bonus” was added for all employees for onsite hours worked, according to the release.
The precautions have been part of doing business since the early months of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“It was a never a question as to how seriously, or how rigorously, we would work to protect the health and safety of all our employees and their families throughout this pandemic,” Ben Rice, president of the company, said in the release. “We knew it was something we needed to get right from day one, and then continue to improve from there.”
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