Hani Bin Sha’ari spent more than two decades rising through the ranks at STMicroelectronics NV’s facility in Malaysia. He prided himself on working hard to provide for his wife and four children. So when the chip plant remained open through a spike in COVID-19 infections this year, he kept doing his job.
Then one July morning, the 43-year-old woke up with a fever. His wife, Nancy, took him to a local clinic, requesting a coronavirus test because of infections at the plant. The results came back positive. Hani was soon quarantined in a hospital. He lost so much weight he started avoiding video calls so he wouldn’t alarm his family. When the couple spoke by phone later, Hani was out of breath and she urged him to rest. It was their last conversation.
"My 4-year-old son keeps asking, ‘Where is ayah? Where is ayah?’” Nancy, 41, said in an interview, using a Malay word for dad.