Fremont Tesla Workers Test Positive For Coronavirus: Report

FREMONT, CA — At least two workers for Tesla's Fremont assembly plant have tested positive for coronavirus, according to a report in the Washington Post. The information is from workers who would not give their names for publication, and is not confirmed by the company or county health officials.

The report states that the workers who tested positive, one on the day shift and one on the night shift, have been off work since testing positive. They work at the seat assembly plant, which is separate from the main assembly plant.

An agreement between the Alameda County Public Health Department and Tesla which allowed the plant to officially reopen requires the company to enforce social distancing and report all coronavirus cases to the health department. Like the rest of the county, the Tesla plant is subject to a face mask requirement for all workers.

The health department reports coronavirus cases to the public on a daily basis. Through Sunday night, just 198 cases of coronavirus have been confirmed in Fremont since the start of the pandemic. On May 18, the date the agreement went into effect, Fremont Patch reported there were 136 cases in Fremont. Since that time, testing has become more widely available.

Neetu Balram, Public Information Manager for the health department, told the Post that Telsa has not reported any cases to the county and was “not required to directly report known cases” before the agreement went into effect, so it is possible that there were cases between the time the plant restarted and the agreement went into effect.

Company founder Elon Musk restarted the plant in defiance of the county health order and said that he was prepared to be arrested for the action. He also threatened to move all operations, including the assembly plant and corporate headquarters, out of California. Fremont Mayor Lily Mei urged temperance on all sides. An agreement to reopen was reached within days.

Read more in The Washington Post.

Also See:

Fremont Coronavirus Cases; Alameda County Death Toll At 101: June 8