A handful of workers at the Covid-hit Coupar Angus chicken plant have not been accounted for, amid claims they have broken quarantine and left the country.
The Incident Management Team (IMT) battling to contain the outbreak at the 2 Sisters factory has been unable to track down several employees, more than two weeks after the cluster was confirmed.
The 900-strong workforce — plus about 250 agency workers — were ordered to isolate when the factory closed its doors on Sunday, August 16.
A source close to the investigation told The Courier the vast majority of workers were complying with guidelines, but confirmed a small number of staff, less than 10, have so far not been traced.
Colleagues claim the missing workers wanted to leave Scotland rather than stay at home for two weeks without pay.
The 2 Sisters Food Group struck a deal to pay all of its staff while the factory is closed, on condition that they stay in isolation.
However, about 250 agency staff on zero hours contracts were told they won’t get paid. The recruitment firm responsible has offered them statutory sick pay or holidays.
It is understood the “missing” staff are agency workers.
The number of positive cases linked to the factory rose again on Friday to 188.
An IMT spokeswoman said staff are ready to return to work on Monday, after a series of risk assessments were undertaken. Extra measures have also been installed at the factory to keep staff physically distanced.
Deputy First Minister and local MSP John Swinney said it was “concerning” that some employees had not been found.
“The effectiveness of our tracing system is directly linked to how many potential contacts we are able to reach,” he said.
“To that end, it is concerning that a small number of contract workers have not been able to be contacted.”
“It is vital that the status of these workers is clarified as soon as possible and, if they are still in the country, that they follow the Scottish Government guidelines.
“While it is good news that the 2 Sisters cluster has not yet led to a community outbreak, we must not become complacent in our efforts to stop the spread of this virus across the region.”
Mr Swinney had earlier warned that refusal to pay agency staff could hamper efforts to fight the virus.
Local Tory MSP Murdo Fraser added: “This is very worrying news.
“The community of Coupar Angus will be rightly anxious at this time – it’s important that the contract workers are traced.”
The 2 Sisters Food Group said it was not aware that any of its staff were unaccounted for.
