Posts Categorized: Health & Safety

On May 3, UFCW International representatives and members of three UFCW locals met with officials from the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regarding the need for an OSHA standard to protect workers from COVID-19.

The OSHA standard would protect most workers in private industries in the United States from the risks of contracting COVID-19 at work. It is anticipated that the standard will require employers to upgrade and improve ventilation and continue to distance workers. In grocery stores, this would mean limiting the number of customers in the stores to provide, as much as possible, six feet of distance between workers and customers. All employers will be required to provide personal protective equipment; conduct testing for COVID-19; and require quarantine for workers who have tested positive for COVID-19. 

The UFCW has been calling for OSHA to issue an emergency temporary standard to protect workers from COVID-19 since early in the pandemic. Under the previous administration, OSHA never did that. Thousands of workers in UFCW industries have contracted COVID-19, and the UFCW has lost hundreds of workers in meatpacking, poultry, retail food and other industries as a result of contracting the virus.

In January, an executive order by President Biden ordered OSHA to review the need for a standard, and based upon that need, told OSHA to write and issue the standard. This standard has been drafted, but has been delayed and the subject of heavy lobbying by both the meat and retail grocery industries. 

The last step for issuing this standard is for the White House OMB to review and hear from interested parties or stakeholders. On May 3, Melanie Pilkington, a member of UFCW Local 400 who works for Giant Food in Charlottesville, Va.; Dana Jahn, a member of UFCW Local 222 who is a business representative at Smithfield Foods in Denison, Iowa; and Franky Palomares, who is a UFCW Local 2 member and steward and a maintenance worker at Cargill in Dodge City, Kan., had that opportunity.

OMB officials were told that COVID-19 infections are still continuing in workplaces, and in workplaces where vaccinations rates are still low, the risk of exposure to the virus continues. 

“In order to keep the most employees safe as possible, there needs to be a standard set for every workplace,” said Pilkington, who contracted COVID-19 and was out of work for several weeks. “I hope this helps the White House understand how close we work together and some of the challenges we face. By providing those of us who were infected with immediate sick leave, we may have prevented this from spreading so rapidly.”

You can learn more about President Biden’s Executive Order on Protecting Worker Health and Safety here.

The UFCW is launching a series of COVID-19 educational Q&A events to provide our members with an opportunity to have their questions about the COVID-19 disease and life-saving vaccines addressed by top doctors and public health specialists. The first two events in the series will be held on Thursday, May 6 at 6 p.m. ET and Monday, May 10 at 5 p.m. ET. The event on May 6 will be conducted entirely in Spanish. 

May 6 Event

The May 6 event will feature Dr. Jose Romero, MD, and Dr. Fabian Sandoval, MD. Dr. Romero is chairman of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, and also serves as secretary of the Arkansas Department of Health and a member of the Governor Asa Hutchinson’s cabinet. Dr. Sandoval is the chief executive officer and research director at the Emerson Clinical Research Institute and a member of the Leadership Council and Society for Clinical Research Sites. He is also the Emmy Award winning host of the weekly medical TV show “Tu Salud Tu Familia” and a medical contributor for Telemundo in Washington, D.C.  

This event will be moderated by UFCW Local 2 President Martin Rosas, who also serves as secretary-treasurer of United Latinos of the UFCW. This event will be conducted entirely in Spanish and broadcast live on UFCW’s Facebook page at 6 p.m. ET here.

May 10 Event

The May 10 event will feature Dr. Peter Marks, MD., PhD., Dr. José Montero, MD, MHCDS, and Dr. Robert Harrison, MD, MPH. Dr. Marks is the director of the Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research at the Food and Drug Administration, which is the agency responsible for regulating and reviewing the safety and efficacy of COVID-19 vaccine candidates. Dr. Montero is the director of the Center for State, Tribal, Local, and Territorial Support at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, where he oversees support to the U.S. health departments and those serving tribal nations and insular areas. Dr. Harrison is a clinical professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco, and an occupational and environmental medicine specialist. He specializes in preventing coronavirus spread in the workplace environment. 

This event will be moderated by Executive Vice President and Director of National Bargaining Milton Jones and will be broadcast live on UFCW’s Facebook page at 5 p.m. ET here.

We are asking locals to encourage members to submit questions ahead of each event using the UFCW’s Soapboxx tool in English and Spanish and Phone2Action in English and Spanish. Members can also text “VaxFacts” to 83071 to RSVP and ask their questions today.  

Graphics and flyers to promote the events are available here.