The Worker Institute brings together researchers, educators and students with practitioners in labor, business and policymaking to address issues related to confronting systemic inequality and building a fair economy, robust democracy and just society. We will share opinion, analysis, research, data, insights and training from our faculty and staff.
News
The Ithaca Voice's Guide to Tompkins County school reopening
The Ithaca Voice
“Schools are not accustomed to looking at their buildings from the standpoint of communicable disease,” says Nellie Brown, Director of Workplace Health and Safety Programs at the Worker Institute in an interview with the Ithaca Voice.
Returning Workers Still Question Workplace Safety As Pandemic Continues
With more workers making their way back to their jobs, some provided an update about their recent experiences during a joint panel discussion and press event hosted by The Worker Institute and ROC United.
Little known unemployment program is helping businesses avoid layoffs
WCNY
In an effort to prevent layoffs amidst this tumultuous economic situation, many states including New York have embraced a shared work system. Maria Figueroa, Director of Labor and Policy Research at the Cornell ILR School, explained how the system works.
State Guidelines For Reopening Schools Are "A Skeleton" To Be Adapted To Specific Buildings
wicz fox 40
Nellie Brown speaks with Fox 40 Brown about school reopening, noting school buildings aren't exactly designed with the transmission of communicable diseases in mind and that each building will present its own host of problems.
School Boards Worry About Time, Money When It Comes to Reopening
Spectrum
Nellie Brown speaks with Spectrum News about schools reopening and recommends districts first put together a joint labor-management committee that includes the school nurse, the district’s attorney, the HVAC folks, teachers, staff, and administration.
Can schools safely reopen? Cornell University Health and Safety Director weighs in
localsyr.com
Nellie Brown speaks with Local SYR on the adaptations that schools need to make to reopen safely and the logistical and financial barriers that will entail.
NY’s detailed school rules: Masks, temperature checks, 6-foot distance, sports on hold
syracuse.com
Nellie Brown speaks with Syracuse News on the difficulties of opening schools, including pointing out that some of the options that are best for safety, like sending kids for half days so they are spaced out as much as possible, may create burdens for families.
Cuomo studies, malls wait for instructions on air filters
Times Union News
Nellie Brown speaks with the Time Union on the complications of installing HEPA or MERV filters and the need for ventilation fans in large buildings that are powerful enough to circulate air through high-density filters.
Nellie Brown speaks with Newsday on the difficulty of opening shopping malls due to the mindset of shoppers at indoor malls, where people congregate in groups and sit on benches together.
Occupancy limits and no fitting rooms: Shopping in the COVID-19 era
Newsday
Nellie Brown tells Newsday that temperature checks on employees will likely be commonplace, even though it is a “coarse screen” that won't pick up asymptomatic and pre-symptomatic infections.
Experts: COVID-19 outbreaks at processing plants affect the whole community
CNY Central
Nellie Brown speaks to CNYCentral about making processing plants safe during the Covid-19 outbreak, "you tend to have people working literally shoulder to shoulder doing their processing. So that makes protecting individuals far more difficult. You're going to have to really look at putting barriers between people."
Workers have filed 4,775 complaints to OSHA about exposure to Covid-19 on the job.
Nellie Brown, speaking to The Counter, says the threat of OSHA citations, whether in the form of fines or public notice, can motivate employers to make safer workplaces.
As carmakers restart factories, they look at steps to protect workers from COVID-19
Marketplace
Art Wheaton speaks at Marketplace about precautions that car manufacturers can take, "you may have some staggered start and stop times, you may have people arriving at different intervals or different places and they may have more than one entrance."
Health Experts Say Schools Can Reopen in the Fall — But With Some Big Changes
Nellie Brown speaks with EdSurge on schools reopening and says that Schools will also need to wade through a morass of individual concerns around cafeteria and classroom seating, transportation and, in some cases, retrofitting bathrooms and other facilities.
As Americans Return to Work, How Will COVID Change the Workplace?
Nellie Brown speaks with Health Day News about how companies will take advantage of automation to further protect workers' health -- automatic doors, automatic lighting, automatic water fountains, automatic dispensers for sugar and creamer at the coffee stand.
NY, lifeguards wrangle over safety issues as beaches prepare to open
Newsday
Nellie Brown speaks to Newsday cautioning about the use of PPE for lifeguards on New York beaches, "as always, the equipment needs to be provided, fitting the wearer properly, and properly donned and doffed and decontaminated."
Nellie Brown speaks to Spectrum News about being realistic about what life will be like as regions reopen, "at first it's going to be awkward and difficult and we're not going to be happy and we’re going to long for the good old days."
Two White House Coronavirus Cases Raise Question of if Anyone Is Really Safe
The New York Times
Nellie Brown speaks to the New York Times about understanding the limitations of testing and what can happen in the time immediately after a test is taken.
For retailers, reopening means rethinking everything about a store
Marketplace
Nellie Brown advises that retail stores consider adding a sign saying, “Please don’t touch an item unless you truly are interested in buying it. Or if it’s a piece of clothing, you know, if you’re truly interested in looking at it.”
COVID-19 impact: Nellie Brown on workplace consequences
Cornell Chronicle
Nellie Brown speaks with the Cornell Chronicle on Covid-19 and discusses the need for sick leave for all types of workers, and predicts we’ll see an increase in collective bargaining for safer workplaces.
Distancing at Reopened Offices Will Mean Long Elevator Lines
Bloomberg Law
Nellie Brown recommends to Bloomberg News that employees returning to the office should wear masks when they’re moving from floor to floor on elevators.
Grocery stores take steps to protect cashiers and customers
Newsday
Nellie Brown advisers that retailers’ measures should also include scheduled hand-washing breaks for employees, finding ways to reduce the use of paper coupons, and encouraging customers to pay with credit/debit cards instead of cash.
