Latino father and essential worker has died from COVID-19. He was afraid of losing his job.

Alisha Álvarez, 28, bade her father a final farewell at his funeral on Friday, still wondering if she could have done more to convince him that he didn’t have to go to work if he feared contracting coronavirus .

José Roberto Álvarez Mena, his father, was one of thousands of essential workers who showed up for work as California saw an increase in coronavirus cases after its economy partially reopened earlier this summer. Álvarez Mena was working as a maintenance manager for Mission Foods Corp. in Commerce, Calif., When he tested positive for COVID-19 on June 28.

Alisha’s mother and older sister, who both lived with José Roberto, also tested positive for the virus during the same period. As the two women recovered, José Roberto’s symptoms worsened. On July 4, he was hospitalized after having difficulty breathing.

He was then admitted to the hospital’s intensive care unit the next day. José Roberto, known to residents of his Los Angeles community as “Beto Mena,” spent two weeks on a ventilator until his death on July 20. He was 67 years old.

“It’s the most painful thing, especially because you can’t see them in person, you can’t say goodbye. People have to remember that, when they say they don’t want to wear a mask. “Alisha told NBC News. “It is not a political issue. It harms people and ruins their lives.”

José Roberto, who was an engineer by profession, emigrated from El Salvador to the United States in the 1980s “to work and provide for his children,” Alisha said, adding that he was the sole provider of the family. “That’s why work has always been the most important thing for him.”

“My dad never said no to helping people. He was always there for any member of the family, no matter what. He was the kind of guy who went to work on his days off because his boss called him for help, ”Alisha said.

The Los Angeles Department of Public Health has ordered the temporary shutdown of Mission Foods Corp. July 29 for failing to report a COVID-19 outbreak that sickened at least 40 of their workers; they also shut down two other food processors. The company was allowed to reopen its facilities a day later.

County officials were investigating the deaths of two Mission Foods Corp. employees, including José Roberto, the Los Angeles Times reported.

The family criticized the company for not protecting José Roberto. Alisha said their actions were “downright negligent”. A month before Mission Foods closed, José Roberto told his family he heard rumbling at work from people falling ill, according to his daughter.

“He would come home and tell my mom so-and-so is sick or someone else has broken down,” Alisha said. “But nothing has been officially told to my father.”

Alisha said the company’s behavior was inconsistent with what her father experienced in May when he received an official letter from Mission Foods warning him of potential exposure to COVID-19 at work after a employee contracted the virus. At the time, both of her parents tested negative for the virus.

“There are a lot of essential laborers and Latino laborers at Mission Foods, who are there to provide for their families, who don’t want to talk because they are afraid,” Alisha said.

Mission Foods said that “company-wide health and safety measures often meet or exceed the requirements of health authorities” and that they personally deliver a note to each employee at their respective establishment when the company is informed of a confirmed case.

Fear of losing your job “or being replaced by someone younger”

As California began to see an increase in COVID-19 cases, Alisha and her siblings began to worry about their father’s exposure to the virus at work, especially because he suffered from diabetes and high blood pressure.

Alisha and her siblings would say to José Roberto, “you have rights” and encourage him to disclose his pre-existing health conditions to his employer in order to return to work later when the coronavirus cases did not increase.

“But he was afraid of losing his job or being replaced by someone younger,” Alisha said. “And on our side, we did not take the time to find out what his rights would have been. I wish I had a lawyer then – that would mean he would still be here with me alive.

The Álvarez family organized the funeral service for José Roberto on Friday. About two dozen people showed up at a cemetery with face masks on. People sat in another chair to keep a physical distance while a priest gave mass on behalf of José Roberto. About 40 people listened to the service via Zoom videoconference.

“We had to limit the number of people attending the funeral and we are a large Latin American family, so that was a challenge,” said Alisha. “But in a way, it also allowed us to cry in a more intimate way.”

Alisha and her siblings helped their mother leave home last weekend “just because there are too many memories”. Alisha’s parents had been together for about 35 years.

The family recently created the Beto Mena Foundation to honor the memory of José Roberto. Alisha hopes the nonprofit will help Latin American families struggling to survive the pandemic, as well as other communities of color. So far, they have been able to send basic medical supplies and thermometers to families without access to COVID-19 tests in El Salvador, José Roberto’s homeland.

Ultimately, Alisha hopes the foundation can help essential workers gain access to bilingual labor lawyers and organize food drives and other community events around Los Angeles and Orange County in partnership with other foundations.

The coronavirus has killed at least 5,136 people in Los Angeles County, half of whom are Latin Americans.

“These are not just numbers. These are people. These are mothers, fathers, siblings, uncles who are no longer with us,” Alisha told Telemundo in Spanish last week.

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