Judge Dismisses Missouri Lawsuit Over Meat Worker Safety

A judge has dismissed a lawsuit against a Missouri meatpacking facility over employee safety.

U.S. District Judge Greg Kays ruled that oversight of the Smithfield Foods plant's measures to slow the spread of the coronavirus falls to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, not the courts.

USDA Secretary Sonny Perdue said Wednesday his agency is working with OSHA on that. The issue of worker safety has loomed large as President Donald Trump ordered plants to stay open amid the virus crisis. Some big grocers this week began limiting meat sales.

Perdue said consumers should soon see the meat supply “fully back up.”