Requena v. Pilgrim's Pride Corp.

599 F.Supp.3d 469

Jose Manuel REQUENA and Oscar Requena, Individually and on Behalf of the Estate of Maria Hernandez, Plaintiffs,

v.PILGRIM'S PRIDE CORPORATION, Defendant.

CASE NO. 9:20-CV-00147-ZJH

United States District Court, E.D. Texas, Lufkin Division.

Signed April 22, 2022

Jim Saxon Hart, Eloy Ernesto Gaitan, Paul Griffin Bunnell, Sean Hudson McCarthy, William R. Langley, Williams Hart Boundas Easterby LLP, Houston, TX, George Edmond Chandler, Chandler Mathis & Zivley, P.C., Lufkin, TX, for Plaintiff Jose Manuel Requena.

Jim Saxon Hart, Paul Griffin Bunnell, Sean Hudson McCarthy, William R. Langley, Williams Hart Boundas Easterby LLP, Houston, TX, George Edmond Chandler, Chandler Mathis & Zivley, P.C., Lufkin, TX, for Plaintiff Oscar Requena.

Clayton Edward Bailey, Benjamin Leon Stewart, Jason Robert Marlin, Bailey Brauer PLLC, Dallas, TX, for Defendant.

ORDER GRANTING DEFENDANT'S MOTION FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT

Zack Hawthorn, United States Magistrate Judge

Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 636(c), Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 73, and order of the District Court, this matter is before the undersigned Magistrate Judge for all proceedings and entry of judgment in accordance with the consent of the parties. Pending before the court is Defendant Pilgrim's Pride Corporation's Motion for Summary Judgment. Doc. No. 70.

This is one of the first cases alleging workplace exposure to COVID-19. In June of 2020, Plaintiffs Jose and Oscar Requena filed this lawsuit individually and on behalf of the estate of their mother, Maria Hernandez. They alleged that Pilgrim's negligently exposed Hernandez to COVID-19 while she worked at one of Pilgrim's poultry-processing plants in April of that year. Days after Hernandez tested positive, she tragically passed away.

A year after the Requenas filed suit, the Texas Legislature passed the Pandemic Liability Protection Act ("PLPA"), which establishes how an employer may be liable for exposing its employee to COVID-19. Because the Requenas have not produced evidence that satisfies some of the PLPA's elements, the court grants Pilgrim's Pride's Motion for Summary Judgment.

I. Factual Background

A. Hernandez's Job at the Plant

For decades, Maria Hernandez worked at Pilgrim's Pride Corporation's poultry-processing plant in Lufkin, Angelina County, Texas. Freeman Dep. 7:22–8:8, Doc. No. 73-5 at 4. In April of 2020, as the first COVID-19 cases were appearing in Angelina County, Hernandez worked at the plant's "Second Processing" line packing chicken parts onto trays for future delivery.¹ Texas COVID-19 Data, Cumulative Confirmed Cases over Time by County , TEXAS HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES (March 28, 2022, 10:26 AM), https://www.dshs.state.tx.us/coronavirus/additionaldata/; Freeman Dep. 9:1–11:10, Doc. No. 73-5 at 4-5. On about April 23, 2020, though, one of Hernandez's supervisors told her to report to the "28 Cooler" area. Freeman Dep. 13:14-24, Doc. No. 73-5 at 5. Although Hernandez's coworker testified that Hernandez objected to reporting to the 28 Cooler, she reported anyway because she would be disciplined if she didn't follow directions.² Freeman Dep. 14:5-7, Doc. No. 73-5 at 6; J. Requena Dep. 78:22-24, Doc. No. 73-3 at 21. Hernandez worked in the 28 Cooler anywhere from one to eight days.³

The 28 Cooler was the first of three areas in "Third Processing," which was downstream from Hernandez's usual tray-packing post. Dempsey Dep. 174:17, Doc. No. 73-7 at 46. Named because its temperature was twenty-eight degrees Fahrenheit, the 28 Cooler served as a staging area where workers retrieved the packed chicken from Second Processing, stored it on racks, then, when it was ready, placed it on a conveyor belt traveling through a hole in a wall to the Labeling Department. Olade Dep. 101:18-25, Doc. No. 73-6 at 27; Freeman Dep. 100:11-13, Doc. No. 73-5 at 27. Hernandez's specific role in the 28 Cooler was to make sure the chicken was placed on that conveyor belt correctly. Freeman Dep. 48:3-4, Doc. No. 73-5 at 14. Once the chicken passed into the Labeling Department, other workers labeled it and placed it back on the conveyor belt through another hole in the wall to its final destination, the Shipping Department. Olade Dep. 25:22-25, Doc. No. 73-6 at 8; Dempsey Dep. 177:4-8, Doc. No. 73-7 at 46.

Collectively, the 28 Cooler, the Labeling Department, and the Shipping Department comprised "Third Processing," but employees sometimes referred to all three areas as "shipping and labeling." Aguilar Dep. 36:9-11, 36:21, 37:5-9, 39:3-6, Doc. No. 73-8 at 11, 12. And while each area was walled off and "named differently," they were somewhat "connected." Freeman Dep. 18:22-24, Doc. No. 73-5 at 7. Specifically, between the 28 Cooler and the Labeling Department, there were eight wall openings for product to move through and one doorless archway for foot traffic. Dempsey Dep. 177:9-19, 178:1-4, Doc. No. 73-7 at 46, 47. Employees passed through the archway "all day long" to move racks between rooms, access the bathroom, and "mingle" with each other. Dempsey Dep. 178:11-21, Doc. No. 73-7 at 47; Freeman Dep. 49:2-10, Doc. No. 73-5 at 14.

B. The 28 Cooler's COVID-19 Presence

Pilgrim's sent Hernandez into the 28 Cooler on April 23, 2020. Freeman Dep. 13:14-24, Doc. No. 73-5 at 5. On that day, that area had no confirmed COVID-19 cases. Doc. No. 71-14 at 2, 4, 6. There were, however, two employees on "monitor" status after they were designated "close contacts." Id. at 4, 6. Further, Pilgrim's sent Hernandez there two days after a 28 Cooler employee tested for COVID-19 and one day before he received a positive result. Id. at 6. In addition, during the period Hernandez possibly worked there, six more 28 Cooler employees took tests, with two returning negative results (the evidence does not reveal the other four workers’ results). Id. at 10-13. Pilgrim's also sent home a 28 Cooler employee because of close contact with a positive case. Id. at 10.

The situation in the rest of Third Processing was worse. Between April 16 and May 4, there were twenty-five tests and eleven positive results in the Labeling Department. Id. at 3-6, 8-13. Three of those employees tested positive on or before the day Pilgrim's sent Hernandez to the 28 Cooler. Id. at 4, 6, 8. There were also another thirteen close contacts. Id. at 4-6, 10. During the same period in the Shipping Department, one employee tested positive on the day Pilgrim's sent Hernandez to the 28 Cooler, two more tested positive shortly afterward, and an additional five were close contacts. Id. at 6, 9, 10. Combining the 28 Cooler, the Labeling Department, and the Shipping Department, the fifteen confirmed cases in Third Processing accounted for 44% of total cases at the plant between April 20 and May 5. Id. at 2-6, 8-13. For context, the entire county reported just fifty-four cases on May 5. Texas COVID-19 Data , TEXAS HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES. Anecdotally, Hernandez's coworker described "shipping and labeling" as where "people were getting sick" and the 28 Cooler as containing "most of the cases" at the plant. Freeman Dep. 50:25–51:2, 103:20–104:5, Doc. No. 73-5 at 15, 28.

C. Safety Measures That Pilgrim's Enacted

Pilgrim's implemented several COVID-19 protocols before Hernandez tested positive. When counting attendance, it allowed certain vulnerable employees to stay home and receive short-term disability benefits. Doc. No. 71-15 at 2. It also didn't discipline workers who stayed home because of COVID-19 concerns. Fernandez Dep. 55:10–56:4, Doc. No. 71-3 at 4-5. As for on-site disease prevention, when employees entered the plant, Pilgrim's checked their temperatures using infrared cameras and provided touchless-entry turnstiles. Olade Dep. 47:17–48:1, 84:10-21, Doc. No. 73-6 at 14, 23. Pilgrim's also required workers returning from a leave of absence to answer screening questionnaires before resuming work. Doc. No. 73-29 at 2. Once inside the plant, workers sprayed KC690 disinfectant and kept doors propped open to avoid surface-to-surface transmission. Dempsey Dep. 82:12-20, Doc. No. 73-7 at 23; Olade Dep. 84:19–85:3, Doc. No. 73-6 at 23. To keep workers socially distanced, Pilgrim's added outdoor tables for additional break space and erected physical barriers between work stations and breakroom tables. Olade Dep. 85:4-10, 85:24–86:6, Doc. No. 73-6 at 23-24. And to track the potential spread of COVID-19, the Occupational Health Manager kept a spreadsheet that noted close contacts and positive results (among other things). Aguilar Dep. 9:2-6, 72:8-17, Doc. No. 73-8 at 4, 20. The spreadsheet, however, was an internal document only: Because Pilgrim's was implementing assorted measures to combat COVID-19, it felt it was unnecessary to share infection numbers with its workforce. Dempsey Dep. 137:2-6, Doc. No. 73-7 at 36.

Pilgrim's enacted several other measures to combat the threat of COVID-19, but it's unclear whether this happened before or after Hernandez tested positive.⁴ To start, the plant banned all visitors. Doc. No. 71-17 at 6. To encourage social distancing, it staggered start and break times (Doc. No. 71-16 at 2), placed traffic-flow markers throughout the facility (Olade Dep. 87:16-25, Doc. No. 73-6 at 24; Doc. No. 73-29 at 3), drew circles on the floor marking six feet of separation (Olade Dep. 89:10-16, Doc. No. 73-6 at 24; Doc. No. 73-29 at 3), removed every other chair in the break room (Doc. No. 73-29 at 3), erected tents and then permanent outdoor structures for extra break space (Doc. No. 71-16 at 2; Dempsey Dep. 151:24–152:2, Doc. No. 73-7 at 40), and constructed temporary plastic dividers between work stations (Dempsey Dep. 168:4-13, Doc. No. 71-1 at 18). To keep workers informed, it sent text updates to its staff when an employee tested positive (Dempsey Dep. 71:6-20, Doc. No. 73-7 at 20) and posted multilingual signage about COVID-19 management (Olade Dep. 91:4-10, Doc. No. 73-6 at 25; Doc. No. 73-29 at 3). To prevent disease spread, Pilgrim's instructed employees to wash...