Apr 14, 2020

Washington state fruit packing plant hires teens as at-risk workers stay home

The pear season was well underway in the Hood River valley when the coronavirus pandemic hit Oregon and Washington.

“The initial impact was fear and uncertainty,” said Doug Gibson vice president of Mount Adams Fruit, a family-owned packing and shipping operation that began in 1917.

The company in Bingen, Washington, just across the Hood River Bridge, has 350 employees and ships pears, cherries and apples across the United States and the world.

According to a story in The Oregonian, the Hood River-area fruit packing plant hired teenagers as coronavirus fears kept at-risk workers at home.

The company has increased space in the lunchroom to make sure everyone sits 6 feet from each other and built barricades in all production areas to allow social distancing. All public areas are cleaned multiple times a day. No one has come down with coronavirus. Employees who do feel sick, receive sick leave and must be checked at a clinic before getting permission to return to work.

According to the story:

Management wasn’t sure how the coronavirus would affect the company. The initial outlook was good as orders soared with grocery stores rushing to stock up on pears, and business has remained steady with consumers continuing to want fruit.

Then schools closed and people in high-risk categories were advised to stay home. Having enough workers at the plant was critical for area farmers. If their products aren’t shipped, they don’t make money on their crops.

“We encouraged all employees in the risk category to stay home,” said Gibson. “We let them know the company would take care of them going forward as we figured it out ourselves.”

Other employees could work, but many of them worried about leaving their children home alone all day.

In the meantime, the plant needed to be constantly disinfected and run at capacity.

To build up its work force, the company applied to Washington state for minor work permits, required by law because the plant is considered a factory. Once approved, the company offered to hire high school kids from families who worked at the plant. They could have hired students as young as 15, but thought it best each student be at least 16.

To view the entire story, visit here.