Employers try to protect essential workers during coronavirus pandemic

Before the coronavirus pandemic, Syracuse University planned to give T-shirts to students and alumni as part of its 150th anniversary celebration. Instead, the university distributed the shirts to its essential workers with instructions for turning them into protective masks.

The plan is just one example of how SU and other employers in the Syracuse area are trying to protect their workers during the coronavirus crisis.

New York state Gov. Andrew Cuomo has issued an executive order that will keep all nonessential businesses closed until at least May 15. Essential businesses — including maintenance and utility services, health care operations and grocery stores — can remain open as long as they comply with public health guidance.

Essential workers and their union representatives told The Daily Orange that working amid the pandemic has caused anxiety and stress, but in many cases, employers have taken initiative to keep workers safe and deliver the support they need.

“(SU has) been creative in creating limited schedules and providing training opportunities from home to keep folks gainfully employed and keeping their benefits intact,” said Doug McClure, a representative for Syracuse University Service Employees’ International Union Local200 United.

SEIU represents service, maintenance and library technicians at SU, which includes workers from Bird Library, Food Services and maintenance departments. The university’s leadership team and administrators have been “top notch,” McClure said.

While some essential employees fear what the future holds for them and their coworkers, they also hope the challenges that the outbreak has exposed — difficulty accessing child care, maintaining benefits and staying healthy — will lead to greater support for workers.

With kids home from school and new schedules at work, daily life has changed, said Craig Powers, union chair of SEIU Local 200. Powers’ wife is a registered nurse. The couple has two young children.

“The university allowed many of our members to adjust their schedules to accommodate their conflicts with child or elder care,” Powers said. “Most of my morning is spent in my newfound kindergarten teacher role and labor management calls from work.”

Powers is one of over 850 SEIU Local 200 employees adjusting to new hours, roles and responsibilities during the pandemic. Some of the union’s members live at home with elderly parents or young kids, Powers said.

From the beginning, the university has worked with the union to promote a safe working environment, Powers said. SU has provided paper masks for workers and even encouraged them to make their T-shirt masks while on the clock.

If employees are able to work from home, the university encourages them not to come in, Powers said.

Adapting to the new working conditions has been easier for some employees than others, McClure said. Employees working in SU facilities have adjusted to a reduced work schedule that involves a week of on-campus work followed by a week of mandatory training at home, he said.

For other employees, such as Food Services workers, there has been little to no work to do on campus after most cafes and dining centers closed.

Union officials have been working with the leadership teams from human recourses, Food Services, library and facilities to make sure workers are being taken care of, McClure said.

“We typically negotiate the terms and conditions for working conditions,” McClure said. “This is out of everybody’s hands. It’s not in the employer’s hands. It’s not in the union’s hands. It’s not in the employees’ hands.”

Mark Spadafore, president of the Greater Syracuse Labor Council, has hosted Facebook live streams to answer questions essential workers may have about their workplace rights during the pandemic. Workers from across the region participated in the first live stream, held April 22.

The labor council will advocate to have COVID-19 recognized as an occupational disease because many essential workers are exposed to the virus, Spadafore said.

“A lot of people are coming out and saying these healthcare workers are heroes,” Spadafore said. “None of my members wanted to be a hero. They’re doing their job, and at this time it’s really hard to do their job. I see them as heroes every day.”

Cuomo on April 20 proposed a 50% bonus for medical personnel, mass transit employees and other essential workers on the frontlines of the pandemic. The economy only shut down for people who have the luxury of staying at home, Cuomo said.

Jen Reid, who works for the Onondaga County Health Department’s Special Children Services, worries if employers will keep up with social distancing guidelines and other health protocols once the pandemic starts to subside.

Special Children Services provides evaluations, education and therapy for children up to age five who have a developmental delay or disability. The department does a considerable amount of fieldwork where employees are present in clients’ homes, Reid said.

“I don’t know if my employer, and a lot of the employers in the area, really grasp the safety issues going forward,” Reid said. “Things are starting to plateau a little bit here, but most people have still never been exposed to this virus.”

Easing safety protocols too early could lead to new cases of the virus, she said.

Reid also worries about the financial stability of her unit, she said. The county is beginning to create plans for the upcoming months, but the effects of the pandemic will be long-lasting, she said.

“We’re already operating pretty close to the bone, and I think down the road from this, I can see them laying off people,” Reid said. “I can see pensions and wages being affected.”

The best way to address concerns about the pandemic is to speak openly about the challenges it presents workers, Spadafore said. Sharing stories brings about change, he said.

“A lot of times we do focus on the struggles in the labor movement,” Spadafore said. “And I think that we have to understand what brings us together and the good things that can come out of this. Our strength is when we come together, and we need to do it with joy.”