Fear and Concern Over Cleaning of Offices When Employees Return

As COVID-19 wanes to some degree, more and more people are returning to work.  This means there is the possibility that the coronavirus could begin to sicken people again.  Some who are greatly concerned about this are custodians and janitors that clean office buildings.  Note the following article regarding this concern from bizjournals.com. It behooves all of us to be vigilant in using PPE and common sense to avoid contracting or spreading this deadly virus.

Janitors across the Twin Cities are calling for workplace protections as office towers begin to welcome employees back after months of working from home.

Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 26, which represents over 4,000 janitors who clean commercial buildings, is asking for increased training, time to regularly wash hands, immediate notification of potential exposure and daily sanitization of uniforms.

"Our members have born the brunt of the virus. As more people are venturing out, we demand safety," said Local 26 President Iris Altamirano on a conference call Monday.

Even though offices emptied out in mid-March to slow the spread of the pandemic, over 100 SEIU members have been diagnosed with Covid-19. SEIU member Armano Solis, a janitor at U.S. Bank Plaza, died from Covid-19 in April.

"Imagine what will happen once these office buildings are filled up again," Altamirano said.

A survey of hundreds of SEIU members found 73% of workers are nervous about going to work. Furthermore, 1 in 5 don't have gloves, 2 in 5 don't have masks and 45% reported receiving no training around Covid-19 protection.

Altamirano said the union has given out thousands of masks and gloves, "because employers have failed miserably in providing protection."

Ernesto Garnica, a SEIU janitor who recovered from Covid-19 said it's scary thinking about office workers returning to the buildings he cleans.

"We have seen so many people get the virus even with the buildings having been mostly empty," Garnica said. "Now if the buildings begin to fill up, unless changes are made, it will be dangerous for not only us, but the people working in the buildings."

Julia Castillo, an SEIU member for 10 years, said the pandemic is pushing janitorial workers to the limit.

"We used to do a lot of work before. Now we’re working like never before, doing double if not triple more than normal," Castillo said.

By Carter Jones  – Digital Producer, Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal