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Tainted meat from the Bil Mar plant has been linked to 12 deaths RELATED VIDEO CNN's Ed Garsten looks at the impact of the listeria outbreak traced to tainted meat Windows Media 28K 80K Factoid: Bil Mar Foods meat recall serial numbers: EST 6911 P-261 1-800 247-8339 Thorn Apple Valley meat recall serial numbers EST 13529 EST P13529 1-800 839-2427

In this story: Hot dog suspected source A common bacteria that can turn deadly Expert advice RELATED STORIES, SITES

ZEELAND, Michigan (CNN) -- The listeria bacteria cost 241 workers their jobs Wednesday when pink slips were handed out at Bill Mar Foods because of problems associated with a bacterial outbreak linked to the meat processing plant.

The company said the layoffs, which represented 19 percent of its work force, are part of a year-long "reconfiguration" of the plant.

Allegations about unclean conditions at the plant in western Michigan were raised in a wrongful death lawsuit filed after the death of a woman who apparently ate tainted hot dogs.

Chicago lawyer Kenneth Moll on Tuesday filed the suit -- his second related to the outbreak -- saying he interviewed former Bil Mar employees who talked about unsanitary conditions at the plant and faulty cooking processes.

Bil Mar is a division of Chicago-based Sara Lee Corp. Company spokeswoman Theresa Herlevsen declined to comment on the allegations of unclean conditions. Herlevsen said Sara Lee is aggressive about good sanitation practices.

Tainted meat from the plant has killed 16 people in 14 states and sickened 72 others, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Hot dog suspected source

Moll's lawsuit accuses the company of negligence in the death of Helen Bodnar, a 74-year-old woman from Memphis who died October 19 of meningitis brought on by a strain of listeria.

Bodnar died after eating hot dogs authorities suspect may have been processed at Bil Mar Foods.

Moll's other lawsuit, a class-action effort, seeks to collect for anyone who claims to have eaten the tainted Sara Lee products.

On December 22, Bil Mar recalled 15 million pounds of hot dogs and other packaged meat products sold under a variety of names. The company said the meat could be tainted with listeria bacteria.

That recall prompted a temporary layoff that Bil Mar made permanent for more than 200 workers this week.

Another company, Thorn Apple Valley, has also recalled 30 million pounds of meat for the same problem.

A common bacteria that can turn deadly

Listeria are common bacteria. One expert says listeria causes mild reactions in most people. But it can be much more harmful, or even deadly, to others, including people with a weakened immune system, the elderly, diabetics and expectant mothers.

"Pregnant women that get listeria can have persistent fevers, unexplained fevers," said Dr. Marcus Zervos, an infectious disease specialist at William Beaumont Hospital.

"They can get infections of the fetus that can be extremely serious, resulting in premature birth and even death of the fetus," warned Zervos.

Jonathan and Lisa Lee lost their twins to a listeria infection. One died in the womb; the other was stillborn.

Symptoms of listeria are so hard to detect that Lisa Lee said she was not treated immediately for it at the hospital.

"They sent me home," said Lee. "I still had a fever, but they said, 'go home, drink lots of fluids and you'll be okay."'

Expert advice

The American Meat Institute said while technologies are being developed to eliminate listeria contamination, consumers should take safeguards as well.

"Just to be safe, consumers should cook hot dogs thoroughly, until they are steaming hot," said Sarah Lilygren. "And even if you have cooked products, make sure in your kitchen you wash your hands before and after eating.

Detroit Bureau Chief Ed Garsten and The Associated Press contributed to this report.