Trader Joe’s Discloses COVID-19 Infection Rate Among Employees
Trader Joe’s said that 1,250 of its employees tested positive for COVID-19 — a rate of about 2.4%, at least through Oct. 31.
The food retailer noted that it continues to meet or exceed CDC guidelines to safeguard the health and safety of its employees and customers.
"The health and safety practices and procedures that have been put in place, and that continually evolve, have been effective because of the great work done by our crew members in every store, every day," said Jon Basalone, president of stores at Monrovia, California-based Trader Joe's. "We appreciate our crew members' diligence and our customers' patience as we work each day to make our stores safe for everyone."
The food retailer also reported that:
- 24% of its 514 stores have had zero positive COVID-19 cases reported among crew members, while 83% of stores have had zero to four cases.
- 95% of associates who tested positive and completed a quarantine period have recovered and chosen to return to work.
- There have been two employee deaths in which COVID-19 was suspected to have been a contributing factor.
In early October, Amazon also released figures for how many of its workers had tested positive for the virus. The retailer said that 19,816 of its employees had tested positive or been presumed positive for COVID-19. That number represents 1.44% of Amazon’s 1.372 million front-line workers, including Whole Foods Market employees.
That announcement marked the first such disclosure from a major retailer during the pandemic.
Trader Joe’s is No. 28 on The PG 100, Progressive Grocer's list of the top food and consumables retailers in North America. Seattle-based Amazon is No. 2 on PG's list, while its wholly owned subsidiary, Austin, Texas-based Whole Foods, is No. 24.
