Push to Classify Grocery Workers as First Responders After IL Deaths

Push to Classify Grocery Workers as First Responders After IL Deaths CHICAGO -- Major grocery chains are reporting their first coronavirus-related employee deaths, which include two at a Chicago-area Walmart. Although Walmart employees are not represented by a union, a union representative said these deaths could have been prevented if governors would declare grocery workers "first responders." The "first responder" designation would ensure that, as front-line workers, they receive testing and other essential preventive measures, said Jonathan Williams, communications director for United Food and Commercial Workers Local 400. "We are prioritizing access to testing and achieving this 'first responder' status because this isn't like a hurricane or an earthquake, you know," he said. "...(Read More)