Since the beginning the pandemic, our essential frontline employees have been committed to keeping the food industry running through one of the most challenging times in our history. That’s why, as a company, we are committed to making the COVID-19 vaccine a priority for our team members.

The CDC and ACIP have endorsed guiding principles that allow essential frontline workers to be in Phase 1b of the vaccine distribution because food processing workers are essential to our society for the food supply infrastructure. Also, frontline workers are at a substantially higher risk of exposure to SARS-Cov-2.

At PSSI, we’ve been closely following developments on the vaccine prioritization while educating our team members about the benefits of the vaccine. Here are a few ways PSSI is taking additional steps to ensure our team members and our industry partners are being considered for vaccine prioritization.

Letters to Governors

In December, we sent a letter to the governors and local health officials in each state we operate, asking that they give our team members priority access.

Internal Education

We are also in the process of an extensive internal, educational campaign. Our internal campaign includes a detailed FAQ on the vaccine and a vaccine planning checklist to keep our teams organized when the vaccine becomes available.

COVID-19 Response Team

Our COVID-19 Response Team is made up of various departmental subject matter experts from Human Resources, Operations, Marketing, Safety and Food Safety. Together, this team not only keeps our organization up to date with the latest developments, they also do personal outreach to team members who need assistance setting up appointments to receive the vaccine.

Partnering with Plants

We’ve been working closely with our customers in the facilities that we serve to explore opportunities to make the vaccine available to team members on site. This would allow for easier access for our team members.

As the vaccine prioritization process continues to develop, we will continue to educate our team members on the benefits of the vaccine and work to make it available for them. By keeping our team members healthy and safe, we can continue to protect the food supply for North America.

“I am fortunate to be able to get the vaccine,” said Jesus. “Not everyone has this
opportunity available to them. Spanish is my first language and I don’t use technology,
so when a member from PSSI’s COVID-19 Response Team reached out and helped me
schedule my vaccination appointment, it meant a lot to me.”

– Jesus Perez Martinez

PSSI’s First Team member to Receive the COVID-19 Vaccine