Crew members at the Tamron Hall show say the production is not doing enough to protect them from COVID-19.
Read More: Tamron Hall’s journey to daytime success
They say some production staffers who tested positive for the virus or who were exposed were instructed to stay home. But crew members who spoke to BuzzFeed under the condition of anonymity said higher-ups are more concerned that the show, now in its second season, continues being produced than the safety of the staff.
“Instead of playing it safe and telling everyone not to come in, they told us all to come in because it was more important for them to get that show in the can than to be upfront with us,” a production staffer told BuzzFeed. “It felt really shady, and it felt like we weren’t working for human beings. It felt like we were working for robots who just wanted to get the show on the air.”
On Oct. 28, a show executive sent out an email alerting the crew that multiple staffers had tested positive and that those who “may have had close contact with these individuals” are now instructed to quarantine. The remaining crew members stayed at work until Hall herself told them they could go home.
ABC released a statement saying that several members of the production staff have tested positive but they say they are following the necessary guidelines.
“We followed company protocols, state and local guidance, and CDC guidelines and had all positive cases isolate at home and any employee identified through contact tracing quarantine at home for 14 days.”
Crew members added that at other shows in production there is daily testing. But at Tamron Hall, they say only those that work close to her are tested daily.
“We all felt everyone should be tested from the get-go, but they only wanted to test people who were in close contact with Tamron, which didn’t make much sense considering we were all in the same room with each other,” added a crew member.
Crew members say they feel stuck between a rock and a hard place because they don’t want to be out of a job but they also want to be safe. One of them adds that they feel like their choice between being safe or working is being made for them.
Read More: Mom files $16 million lawsuit against Tamron Hall over vaccine segment
“I’ve put myself in some horrible positions, and I’ve given up a lot for this business, healthwise and socially. But I’ve always been the one to make that choice for myself.”
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