SUMMARY:  NTEU sent letters to the House and Senate oversight committees of Congress urging them to monitor agencies as they bring employees back to their places of work and ensure that employees are provided with the flexibility, equipment and supplies necessary to keep them safe.   

Today, NTEU sent letters to the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee and the House Oversight and Reform Committee urging them to closely monitor agencies’ plans for bringing employees back to their worksites.  Specifically, the letter asks the committees to ensure that agencies are taking every precaution to protect employees in this current environment, including:

• Conducting COVID-19 testing and contact tracing for all employees to reduce spread;
• Screening employees, including taking temperatures;
• Cleaning and disinfecting all workspaces and common areas;
• Ensuring safe physical distancing;
• Providing ample supplies of hand-sanitizer, wipes, and gloves;
• Providing and requiring the wearing of masks/cloth face coverings in the workplace;
• Installing plexiglass barriers where appropriate;
• Maximizing telework and other flexibilities, particularly for employees with children whose schools or child-care facilities are closed and those who rely on public transportation where social distancing may not be possible to get to work; and,
• Authorizing telework or weather and safety leave for “high risk” employees.

As federal agencies begin implementing plans to return to worksites, NTEU will engage on all fronts to ensure the health and safety of federal workers. 

                                                                                    Anthony M. Reardon

National President