SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
An aerial view of debris and structural damage is seen at the Mayfield Consumer Products candle factory as search and rescue operations were underway in Mayfield, Kentucky on December 11, 2021. (Photo: Tayfun CoAkun/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
'Absolutely Horrific': Candle Factory Bosses Threatened Firings If Workers Left Ahead of Tornado
Economist and former Labor Secretary Robert Reich called the revelations from the new reporting "beyond horrific."
Dec 14, 2021
Multiple employees of the Mayfield, Kentucky candle factory that was leveled by a devastating tornado late Friday said that supervisors threatened firings if workers left their shifts early amid warnings of the impending storm, according to new reporting by NBC News.
Sharing the new reporting, Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) called the revelations "absolutely horrific."
"Corporations will literally let you die to make a buck."
"Workers may have lost their lives in Kentucky because the company refused to let them take shelter," Brown tweeted. "Corporations putting profit over people's lives should not be happening in America in 2021."
The exclusive story came amid ongoing recovery efforts in multiple states after a catastrophic series of tornadoes ripped through sections of the South and Midwest late Friday into Saturday. The severe weather is blamed for 88 deaths so far, 74 of which were in Kentucky--through which a quad-state tornado tore a potentially historic path of destruction at least 220 miles long.
The Kentucky National Guard said late Monday that all of the workers at the Mayfield Consumer Products factory--which had been going "24/7" to meet demand--had been accounted for. There were eight deaths, far fewer than what was originally feared.
NBC News reported that "at least five workers said supervisors warned employees that they would be fired if they left their shifts early." From the report:
"If you leave, you're more than likely to be fired," [McKayla] Emery said she overheard managers tell four workers standing near her who wanted to leave. "I heard that with my own ears."
Another employee, 20-year-old Elijah Johnson, joined other workers in approaching supervisors to request to leave their shifts.
"I asked to leave and they told me I'd be fired," Johnson said. "Even with the weather like this, you're still going to fire me?" he asked.
"Yes," a manager responded, Johnson told NBC News.
The company denied the allegations to NBC News.
"This is beyond horrific," tweeted economist and former Labor Secretary Robert Reich.
"Corporations will literally let you die to make a buck," he said. "Never forget that."
The company has asserted there are regular storm drills to prepare for disasters.
"We haven't had one since we've been there," 20-year-old Jarred Holmes, who has worked at the factory for months with his finacee, Bryanna Travis, told The Associated Press.
AP's Monday reporting also included comments from Kathy LaVanier, CEO of Ohio-based Renegade Candle Company. She's also a board member at the National Candle Association.
LaVanier said regular disaster drills are important at candle plants, especially to include temporary workers who might have just arrived to fill a demand surge. But the way they are built--rarely with basements, and structured to accommodate long manufacturing lines--makes it hard to avoid damage when a truly devastating storm hits.
"If we had enough advance notice and felt it was severe enough," said LaVanier, "you might send people home."
As the Louisville Courier Journal noted, the National Weather Service in Paducah sent out multiple alerts hours before the storm hit.
"No graphics with this post. Just straight from the office," NWSPaducah tweeted at around 11:20 am Friday. "From late afternoon on through tonight, be ready."
"This could be a significant severe event with a strong tornado or two across our region," the service said. "Think about what you would do now. Better to err on the safe side."
Yale Climate Connections also reported that "the quad-state event was extremely well predicted," with public warnings going back to the day before the storms ultimately hit.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Multiple employees of the Mayfield, Kentucky candle factory that was leveled by a devastating tornado late Friday said that supervisors threatened firings if workers left their shifts early amid warnings of the impending storm, according to new reporting by NBC News.
Sharing the new reporting, Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) called the revelations "absolutely horrific."
"Corporations will literally let you die to make a buck."
"Workers may have lost their lives in Kentucky because the company refused to let them take shelter," Brown tweeted. "Corporations putting profit over people's lives should not be happening in America in 2021."
The exclusive story came amid ongoing recovery efforts in multiple states after a catastrophic series of tornadoes ripped through sections of the South and Midwest late Friday into Saturday. The severe weather is blamed for 88 deaths so far, 74 of which were in Kentucky--through which a quad-state tornado tore a potentially historic path of destruction at least 220 miles long.
The Kentucky National Guard said late Monday that all of the workers at the Mayfield Consumer Products factory--which had been going "24/7" to meet demand--had been accounted for. There were eight deaths, far fewer than what was originally feared.
NBC News reported that "at least five workers said supervisors warned employees that they would be fired if they left their shifts early." From the report:
"If you leave, you're more than likely to be fired," [McKayla] Emery said she overheard managers tell four workers standing near her who wanted to leave. "I heard that with my own ears."
Another employee, 20-year-old Elijah Johnson, joined other workers in approaching supervisors to request to leave their shifts.
"I asked to leave and they told me I'd be fired," Johnson said. "Even with the weather like this, you're still going to fire me?" he asked.
"Yes," a manager responded, Johnson told NBC News.
The company denied the allegations to NBC News.
"This is beyond horrific," tweeted economist and former Labor Secretary Robert Reich.
"Corporations will literally let you die to make a buck," he said. "Never forget that."
The company has asserted there are regular storm drills to prepare for disasters.
"We haven't had one since we've been there," 20-year-old Jarred Holmes, who has worked at the factory for months with his finacee, Bryanna Travis, told The Associated Press.
AP's Monday reporting also included comments from Kathy LaVanier, CEO of Ohio-based Renegade Candle Company. She's also a board member at the National Candle Association.
LaVanier said regular disaster drills are important at candle plants, especially to include temporary workers who might have just arrived to fill a demand surge. But the way they are built--rarely with basements, and structured to accommodate long manufacturing lines--makes it hard to avoid damage when a truly devastating storm hits.
"If we had enough advance notice and felt it was severe enough," said LaVanier, "you might send people home."
As the Louisville Courier Journal noted, the National Weather Service in Paducah sent out multiple alerts hours before the storm hit.
"No graphics with this post. Just straight from the office," NWSPaducah tweeted at around 11:20 am Friday. "From late afternoon on through tonight, be ready."
"This could be a significant severe event with a strong tornado or two across our region," the service said. "Think about what you would do now. Better to err on the safe side."
Yale Climate Connections also reported that "the quad-state event was extremely well predicted," with public warnings going back to the day before the storms ultimately hit.
Multiple employees of the Mayfield, Kentucky candle factory that was leveled by a devastating tornado late Friday said that supervisors threatened firings if workers left their shifts early amid warnings of the impending storm, according to new reporting by NBC News.
Sharing the new reporting, Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) called the revelations "absolutely horrific."
"Corporations will literally let you die to make a buck."
"Workers may have lost their lives in Kentucky because the company refused to let them take shelter," Brown tweeted. "Corporations putting profit over people's lives should not be happening in America in 2021."
The exclusive story came amid ongoing recovery efforts in multiple states after a catastrophic series of tornadoes ripped through sections of the South and Midwest late Friday into Saturday. The severe weather is blamed for 88 deaths so far, 74 of which were in Kentucky--through which a quad-state tornado tore a potentially historic path of destruction at least 220 miles long.
The Kentucky National Guard said late Monday that all of the workers at the Mayfield Consumer Products factory--which had been going "24/7" to meet demand--had been accounted for. There were eight deaths, far fewer than what was originally feared.
NBC News reported that "at least five workers said supervisors warned employees that they would be fired if they left their shifts early." From the report:
"If you leave, you're more than likely to be fired," [McKayla] Emery said she overheard managers tell four workers standing near her who wanted to leave. "I heard that with my own ears."
Another employee, 20-year-old Elijah Johnson, joined other workers in approaching supervisors to request to leave their shifts.
"I asked to leave and they told me I'd be fired," Johnson said. "Even with the weather like this, you're still going to fire me?" he asked.
"Yes," a manager responded, Johnson told NBC News.
The company denied the allegations to NBC News.
"This is beyond horrific," tweeted economist and former Labor Secretary Robert Reich.
"Corporations will literally let you die to make a buck," he said. "Never forget that."
The company has asserted there are regular storm drills to prepare for disasters.
"We haven't had one since we've been there," 20-year-old Jarred Holmes, who has worked at the factory for months with his finacee, Bryanna Travis, told The Associated Press.
AP's Monday reporting also included comments from Kathy LaVanier, CEO of Ohio-based Renegade Candle Company. She's also a board member at the National Candle Association.
LaVanier said regular disaster drills are important at candle plants, especially to include temporary workers who might have just arrived to fill a demand surge. But the way they are built--rarely with basements, and structured to accommodate long manufacturing lines--makes it hard to avoid damage when a truly devastating storm hits.
"If we had enough advance notice and felt it was severe enough," said LaVanier, "you might send people home."
As the Louisville Courier Journal noted, the National Weather Service in Paducah sent out multiple alerts hours before the storm hit.
"No graphics with this post. Just straight from the office," NWSPaducah tweeted at around 11:20 am Friday. "From late afternoon on through tonight, be ready."
"This could be a significant severe event with a strong tornado or two across our region," the service said. "Think about what you would do now. Better to err on the safe side."
Yale Climate Connections also reported that "the quad-state event was extremely well predicted," with public warnings going back to the day before the storms ultimately hit.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.