THUNDER BAY — The general manager of Bombardier Transportation in Thunder Bay says the company has worked diligently to provide safeguards against the spread of COVID-19.
Upwards of 450 workers will return to their jobs starting Monday, ending a month-long layoff imposed by the company due to the pandemic.
Plant manager Dave Black says the company consulted closely with the Ministry of Labour and the Thunder Bay District Health Unit on the precautions necesssary for reopening.
Health unit representatives visited the plant, and approved the mitigation measures the company is implementing.
Black said Bombardier has also had discussions about its COVID-19 prevention plan with the two labour unions at the plant.
While the plant has been idled, he said, "We haven't been sitting around doing nothing. We've put a lot of measures in place with shift work, marking entrances and egress, and marking the floors where people walk. We've provided extra cleaning. There's a lot of things that we've done," he told Tbnewswatch in an interview Tuesday.
Black said he hopes everything necessary has been covered, but added that there's also an onus on the employees to work safely.
"We just hope that they also respect the social distancing. We are trying to limit the contact that they're going to have, but we also hope they exercise their responsibility as well," he said.
In advance of the recall, Bombardier has contacted all employees to ensure they are healthy.
Each worker was asked to go over a questionnaire to determine if they have shown any potential symptoms of COVID-19.
"Most of them are anxious to get back here," Black said. "There's always going to be people who are nervous, and there's a lot to be nervous about in the world right now. We will do what we can to ensure that things are safe. We're doing what we can with the guidelines we have been given."
Dominic Pasqualino, president of Unifor Local 1075, said Tuesday he believes "everything proper has been done" to ensure the plant is safe for his members.
Pasqualino noted that protocols include procedures for keeping tools clean and maintaining a distance of two meters between workers at all times.
Shifts will be staggered as well, he said.
Pasqualino said most employees want to return to their jobs and resume their normal earnings, but he agreed that some are concerned about being infected by COVID-19.
"Certainly there's going to be some anxiety there, but we will do everything to make sure it's a safe workplace," he said.
