A not so joyous holiday season for essential workers

A not so joyous holiday season for essential workers

As another holiday season approaches, frontline and essential workers are experiencing a deja vu situation. Most of them are gearing to spend another consecutive holiday season amidst the pandemic work pressure as the omicron variant spreads throughout the country. 
Many essential workers around the country report being demoralized, abused, underpaid, and exhausted as the pandemic continues. This time, it's worse than before as along with the pandemic the country also battles a labor shortage, especially in the healthcare and hospitality sector. Workers in healthcare, transportation, retail, and food services are among the many sectors where the already diminished work staff has to pick up all the slack. The effects of this are seen in the form of canceled flights, closed eateries, and short-staffed retail stores. An essential worker from Massachusetts compared his working pace to that of a freight train, the workers are working as much as they can physically and mentally. A supermarket in Cape Cod is currently operating with 50 workers while their required number is 150, its employees are currently managing 50 hours a week and picking up extra shifts.

If this is the case for retails, conditions of hospital staff can only be imagined. CityMD which is a private urgent care clinic chain in New York has been under pressure due to the rising number of covid cases among staff members. They've closed 1 in 10 locations this week. Most employees haven't gotten time to recover after the pandemic initially hit and they don't seem to be getting any break as omicron cases increase. Unions representing healthcare workers have said that most hospitals failed to fill staff vacancies or replenish the pandemic wary staff. To deal with the shortage, the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention recommended allowing essential workers who've tested positive to return to work sooner than necessary as long as they do not exhibit any symptoms. West Virginia Governor, Jim Justice has outlined a plan to recruit and train more than 2,000 nurses over the next four years using $48 million federal funds. 


Source: CNBC

You might also like

For several reasons, the IT sector is appealing to job seekers. ...Read more

Despite the opposition of restaurant owners who worried it would raise customers' bills, California Governor Gavin Newsom on Monday signed a nation-leading law providing more than 500,000 fast food employees additional authority and rights. ...Read more

Demands for improved pay and workplace environments are coming from workers in California to New York. ...Read more

New graduates from institutions in Nigeria and other African nations have been made aware of job prospects by Microsoft. ...Read more

A mattress company is searching for a role where napping while working is not only acceptable but also required. 'Casper Sleepers' are being hired by Casper, a New York-based business established in 2014. ...Read more

Articles

Americans live paycheck to paycheck, making it difficult to leave their current employer. All thing ...Read more

Today, it is a $174 Billion industry and one of the leading B2B businesses in the US. Whenever HR p ...Read more

Nearly 62% of employees in the managerial levels are satisfied with their jobs. Although they have ...Read more

Robert Owen, a Welsh textile mill owner, social reformer, and labor activist came up with a slogan ...Read more