Managers for Chicago
McDonald's restaurants being sued over allegedly insufficient workplace COVID-19 protections testified Tuesday that they give their employees adequate virus protection gear, and that training them how to use it is a "constant" conversation.
McDonald's General Manager Olivia Salas, Shift Manager Janitha Knox and supervisor Sandra Sladin testified in Illinois state court via Zoom that employees at their respective locations receive multiple masks and gloves throughout their shifts to help prevent potentially catching or spreading the coronavirus. Employees Maria Villasenor and Truvon Turner were incorrect to
testify otherwise during
earlier proceedings in their lawsuit over McDonald's allegedly subpar response to the pandemic, they said.
Salas said all employees at her location have been required to wear face masks since they started getting handed out in April, and that workers can get new ones as needed. Salas said she and other managers enforce the restaurant's mask requirement with "constant reminders" during workers' shifts, and that she'd last trained Villasenor regarding proper mask-wearing procedures about two weeks ago.
"It's just a constant reminder throughout the shift and throughout the day," she said.
Sladin said her Chicago location implemented mask-wearing policies as they became mandatory May 1 under a stay-at-home order issued by Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker. While getting the employees to consistently adhere to the requirement is "an ongoing process," no workers have outright refused to comply with the mandate, she said.
"We take this very seriously. It's ongoing, daily, shiftly," Sladin testified. "It's a constant reminder, constant training."
Testimony from the managers, as well as an expert for McDonald's, closed out the final day of testimony in proceedings over a bid from a proposed class of Chicago McDonald's workers for more adequate information and protection as they continue to serve customers amid the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.
Turner testified earlier this month that his workplace coronavirus safety concerns include a lack of glove availability for crew members at his location. Knox, who typically manages the overnight shift Turner works, said he incorrectly claimed the gloves were only available in the location's crew room because a box of gloves is generally available "right in front of him" at his station in the kitchen.
Knox also said Turner was wrong to claim he hasn't had his temperature taken as part of a precautionary wellness check before starting his shift, because she's personally given him a temperature check in the past. She also blasted his assertion that his coworkers consistently violate social distancing guidelines and protocols, saying that with only three people generally working the overnight shift, "there's enough space for each and every one of us to move around."
Cook County Circuit Judge Eve Reilly also heard testimony Tuesday from William Lang, the chief medical officer for New Hampshire-based WorldClinic, which claims on its website to function as a personal virtual emergency room and health care concierge. Lang also has experience helping to protect against other infectious diseases including SARS and H1N1, particularly during his time working in the White House between the mid-1990s and the mid-2000s, he testified.
Lang testified that he's visited the McDonald's locations at issue in the suit, and that the safety policies and procedures the company implemented in response to the pandemic are in line with current best practices, guidelines and regulations for combating the potential spread of the coronavirus. However, he didn't witness any crew safety huddles or one-on-one training sessions happening during his visit, he testified.
Five McDonald's employees who, along with some of their family members,
launched their suit on May 19 claiming their employers mismanaged safety protocols in four Chicago restaurants, causing unsafe conditions and a "public nuisance" that could endanger public health. Preliminary injunction proceedings began the day after Judge Reilly
rejected McDonald's argument that that governmental agencies, including the state and local departments of health, had primary jurisdiction to hear the workers' claims.
McDonald's has said the allegations are inaccurate and not representative of what's really happening at its 14,000 nationwide locations. The company has defended its response to the pandemic, saying it's distributed more than 100 million masks to workers and set forth standards that require specific safety measures and protective equipment at its restaurants.
Tuesday's testimony closed out a four-day hearing over the workers' request that their corporate and franchise employers be ordered, by preliminary injunction, to implement better safety measures in their respective restaurants. Judge Reilly anticipates issuing a written decision on the request following the parties' Thursday deadline to submit written closing arguments on the motion.
The workers are represented by David P. Dean, Daniel M. Rosenthal, Ryan E. Griffin and Michael P. Ellement of James & Hoffman PC, and Barry M. Bennett, Stephen A. Yokich and Elizabeth L. Rowe of
Dowd Bloch Bennett Cervone Auerbach & Yokich.
McDonald's is represented by Jonathan
Bunge and Daniel Lombard of
Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP.
The case is Massey et al. v. McDonald's Corp. et al., case number 2020-CH-04247, in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois.
--Additional reporting by Celeste Bott and Vin Gurrieri. Editing by Breda Lund.
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