Workers at GM Wentzville plant in Missouri have to mask up again
Kalea HallDetroit — General Motors Co. is reinstating a mask mandate at its Wentzville, Missouri, plant as COVID cases in the area rise.
In a Monday alert to employees obtained by The Detroit News, GM said: "After review of our community and state data, it has been determined Wentzville Assembly will return to mandatory mask usage for all employees and everyone entering the plant beginning 3rd shift Tuesday, July 20 (Monday night start). This reinstatement of the mask requirement is to protect our employees' health and safety."
The move comes just a few weeks after the COVID-19 Joint Task Force, composed of representatives from the UAW, Ford Motor Co., General Motors Co. and Stellantis NV, agreed to let fully vaccinated employees ditch masks starting July 12. The Detroit Free Press first reported the mask mandate reinstatement at Wentzville.
GM is not reinstituting temperature checks at the plant.
"Our GM medical team will continue to monitor plant COVID cases, community trends and CDC/OSHA guidance," GM spokesman Dan Flores said in a statement.
The automaker noted its Wentzville Assembly plant, where the midsize Chevy Colorado and GMC Canyon pickup trucks are built, is a state-approved vaccination site and has had multiple employee vaccination clinics. Another clinic is scheduled July 28.
On Monday, the state of Missouri reported 1,020 new cases of COVID-19, with the seven-day average the highest since Jan. 29, according to a St. Louis Post-Dispatch analysis.
khall@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @bykaleahall