(Marshalltown, Iowa) — The family of a Marshalltown man, who worked in the town’s JBS plant, says the company disregarded workers’ safety when it came to COVID-19, which led to the death of Jose Andrade-Garcia.

Andrade-Garcia, who worked at the meatpacking plant for 21 years, according to the lawsuit, died of COVID-19 on May 15, 2020, after getting rushed to the hospital on April 17 for severe difficulty breathing. KCCI reports, according to the lawsuit, the man went to work, even though he felt sick, and worked until April 13. He was afraid he would be fired if he didn’t show up to work due to the company’s “point system” for attendance, the suit states. If an employee received enough points they would be fired for not showing up, according to the filing.

The company had a steak lunch, to thank employees for their work. According to the lawsuit, despite the Governor’s order at the time that public gatherings be limited to no more than 10 people, “… hundreds of Defendants’ workers were crammed inside the Marshalltown plant cafeteria” with inadequate safety precautions, such as social distancing and limited quantities of people, and provided no protective equipment such as masks or barriers.”

The suit also alleges that workers endured similar conditions while working inside the plant. The Andrade-Garcia family seeks punitive damages and compensation for his loss. It accuses the company of fraudulent misrepresentation, such as the spread of COVID-19 in the Marshalltown plant, sufficient safety measures implemented inside and sufficient safety equipment. It also accuses the company of gross negligence because it owed a duty to Andrade-Garcia to not create intentional or reckless policies to cause injury.

A JBS spokesperson says the company does not comment on pending litigation, lawyers for the company have not filed a response to the initial motion. Tyson faces two separate suits from families of four Waterloo employees who died from the virus in 2020. The company has filed a motion to dismiss both cases, but the court has not rule on those motions. Both cases are set to go to trial in 2024.