Whole Foods Workers Protest Coronavirus Working Conditions With Planned ‘Sick Out’ | Eater
"Employees at this national grocery chain organized a March 31 “sick out” through an unaffiliated group to demand expanded paid sick leave, reinstatement of health care for part-time and seasonal staff, hazard pay, and immediate closure of any store where a worker tests positive. Management has relaxed attendance rules and announced up to two weeks’ pay for diagnosed or quarantined employees, a $1.6 million contribution to an emergency fund, “unlimited call outs” and temporary extra pay through April, but workers say call-outs are unpaid, initial eligibility required a hard-to-get positive test, payments are slow, and requests that employees donate PTO to one another leave many unable to quarantine without losing income — fueling the protest over what organizers describe as piecemeal, inadequate protections that prioritize short-term operations over worker and customer safety." - Jaya Saxena
