Support May Day Workers' Strike
"What do I do? I'm scared. I'm scared to lose my job and I'm scared to die from the coronavirus. Please help me." - Michigan Walmart employee
Support essential workers striking for better working conditions in the middle of a global pandemic today. - Amber & Katie
In our last issue, we talked about the dangers healthcare workers face due to lack of PPE in the workplace. However, healthcare workers aren’t the only essential workers currently endangered by the coronavirus pandemic and lack of adequate protections at work. To date, at least 100 transit workers and 40 grocery workers have died from COVID-19, along with an unknown number delivery workers, warehouse workers, janitors, meat packing workers, and construction workers. And these are just the worker deaths for which we have reports.
As some governors shift from shelter-in-place orders to re-opening businesses, even more workers are being left vulnerable to the coronavirus. For many workers, with their one-time stimulus check already a memory and unemployment benefits contingent on places of business being closed, there are no alternatives that would allow them to continue sheltering in place and avoiding getting sick. Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds put it bluntly: "If you're an employer and you offer to bring your employee back to work and they decide not to, that's a voluntary quit. Therefore, they would not be eligible for the unemployment money."
This appalling approach by some states leaves workers—many of them already working for low wages, with draconian or no paid sick leave and limited healthcare access—with the grim prospect of losing their income or losing their lives.
Today, a coalition of workers from Amazon, Target, Walmart, FedEx, Instacart, Shipt, and Whole Foods will be striking to protest the appalling conditions they’ve been subjected to during the coronavirus pandemic. While these businesses have been booming—and their executives have been working from the safety of their homes— front-line workers have been subjected to working conditions that have made many of them sick and resulted in their deaths.
Workers are striking for better conditions, which include PPE for all employees, shutdowns of infected sites, no restrictions on sick leave and paid sick leave, hazard pay, ending delivery and warehouse quotas, stopping delivery of non-essential items, moving to delivery-only models where possible, mandatory minimum tips for delivery drivers, and requiring retail customers to wear masks. These workers deserve our support.
You can support the #GeneralStrike2020 by withholding your business from Amazon, Target, Walmart, FedEx, Instacart, Shipt, and Whole Foods today, May 1, 2020.
Amplify the demands of #GeneralStrike2020 on social media.
Sign petitions demanding better working conditions and benefits from Amazon and for states to investigate and shut down Amazon warehouses putting workers at risk.
Eliminate unnecessary purchases, both in-person and online.
Tip your delivery drivers generously, today and always.
If you are able, continue to pay your child care workers, house cleaners, and other service workers so they can stay home safely, too.
Read up on how to support domestic workers and commit to being a fair employer if you employ domestic workers.
Support unions, who have been fighting for worker safety and providing visibility into the dangers workers are facing during the coronavirus pandemic, and support the ability for workers to unionize.
Donate to relief organizations for restaurant, bar, and hospitality industry workers.
Donate to immigrant workers through WeCount! and the Immigrant Worker Safety Net Fund.
Donate to Feeding America or find a local food bank to support. Cash donations are often the most beneficial.
Give to RIP Medical Debt to help those struggling with their medical bills.
Wear masks if you must go out, and wash hands frequently.
Revisit our issue on how to support healthcare workers.
STAY HOME.
Forward this bulletin and encourage your friends and family to support the May Day Strike.
Linked & Loud illuminates complex problems and connects readers with the individuals and organizations working to solve them. Each week, we go beyond horrifying headlines to empower readers to take progressive action.
References
Revealed: nearly 100 US transit workers have died of Covid-19 amid lack of basic protections | The Guardian
More Than 40 Grocery Workers Have Died From COVID-19 | GrubStreet
As deaths mount, delivery workers say they're kept in the dark over who's sick | NBC News
They Were Warned Not to Take Sick Days — Then Sick Workers at Their Warehouse Died of Coronavirus | The Intercept
Two of My Colleagues Died of Covid-19 | New York Times
Construction Workers Labor on, Vulnerable and ‘Essential’ | Texas Observer
Worker at Havre de Grace school construction site dies from coronavirus; site shut down day prior when he tested positive | Baltimore Sun
45 NYC doormen and janitors dead from coronavirus, union says | News Break
Some dental workers worry about returning | KGW News
'I'm scared to lose my job and I'm scared to die': Retail employees describe working conditions as coronavirus panic heightens nationwide | Business Insider
Amid a Pandemic, Target Employees Work in Fear | The Nation
Plight of Retail Workers: ‘I’m Scared to Go to Work’ | New York Times
Las Vegas workers push back after mayor's call to reopen casinos and hotels | NBC News
As businesses prepare to reopen, workers weigh COVID-19 risk against the need for a paycheck | Texas Tribune
Avoiding Coronavirus May Be a Luxury Some Workers Can’t Afford | New York Times
Employees Face 'Really Tough Choice' As States Say Return To Work Or Lose Unemployment Benefits | Newsweek
Iowa tells workers to return to their jobs or lose unemployment benefits, despite warnings that reopening could lead to a 2nd wave of infections | Business Insider
Frontline workers call for May Day strike over working conditions | CBS News
Celebrating May Day Starts by Taking Workers Seriously | The Nation
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