Items

• 
  2020-03-15

  "Handwash Everyone"

  I worked at a McDonald’s in March when the United States went into lockdown. Before the lockdown, the drive-thru line was long, the lobby was full of customers, and employee’s rushed around everywhere. The restaurant was always loud with fryers beeping, headsets beeping, customers ordering and complaining, and employee’s trying to have conversations with each other while taking orders all at the same time. People were constantly sneezing, coughing, or sounding like their voices were hoarse, and no one thought anything of it. Everyone went on about their business. After the pandemic, the restaurant was quieter. No more customers were in the lobby, fewer people came through the drive-thru, and fewer employees were at work, less food was being made, so the fryers beeped less often, as did the headsets that warned us when customers wanted to order. One new sound we could all rely on was the alarm that went off every hour, followed by a manager yelling out that everyone needed to wash their hands. The sound of a raspy voice from a customer, a sneeze, or a cough echoed from the speaker above side one in the kitchen, though the entire restaurant and employees would all look at each other in disgust, sure that this customer must have the Corona Virus. The employee in the first booth taking the payment would instantly remove their gloves and rush to scrub their hands before retrieving a new pair of gloves. The person in the second booth who handed the food out the window would be stretching their arm out the window as far as they could in an effort to stay as far away from the person as possible before repeating the same ritual as the last employee in disinfecting themselves. Sounds that usually just fell into the background noise and people assumed were allergies or just a simple cold suddenly elicited a significant amount of fear in my friends and co-workers. While things have mostly gone back to normal, the handwash alarm and manager yelling for a handwash is an hourly reminder that Covid-19 is still around.
• 
  2022-05-23

  COVID-19 Staff Shortage at Gen Korean Barbecue

  Due to COVID-19, Gen, a Korean barbecue place, has had a staff shortage. Today I went there for lunch and noticed that there was fewer people working many tables than in times I have gone in the past. This speaks to the bigger labor issues that have come about since COVID. Some of it may be realizing that jobs like this aren't offering nearly enough to work there. Another possibility is that staff shortages might be happening from vaccine mandates, which depending on how many vaccines some place require, would be less appealing. The sign says that it is only due to COVID-19, but there are many components to that, so narrowing down the reason there are staff shortages could be difficult unless I asked the manager.
• 
  11/24/2020

  Amy Burgoyne Oral History, 2020/11/24

  C19OH
• 
  05/18/2020

  Stanton Webster Oral History, 2020/05/18

  An oral history interview with Stanton Webster who discusses his background opening a distillery in Knoxville, Tennessee before the pandemic. He discusses how his business reacted to the COVID-19 Pandemic and his efforts to keep employees paid while finding new revenue streams. In this business-focused interview he also illustrated how a small group of local business banded together to navigate the pandemic and government funding pitfalls. He also discusses family life and changing roles in the home.
• 
  2020-04-16

  Gagosian Furloughs Part-Time Staff and Interns as Covid-19 Impedes Business

  All galleries felt the immense economic pressure of shuttering their doors. There was uncertainty and furloughs or imminent possibility of losing ones job was a looming presence especially in the spring of 2020. Even international blue-chip galleries like Gagosian were financially struggling. Those that lost their jobs were 

The article discussed job loss - whose jobs - and what this means for the art world in the present and in the future. Other methods of main tenting financially during the pandemic included furloughs and salary cuts where the percentage was determined by how much someone made per year.
• 
  2021

  Essential Workers

  While the pandemic is still going strong, this type of post reflects some of the aftermath of the pandemic. Restrictions have loosened in enough places that people are able to return to restaurants, but there are still so many challenges and obstacles these essential workers are having to face. This picture left an impression on me because it is enforcing that sense of community and having to stick together to make it through these strange times.
• 
  2021-07-13

  Essential AF

  Most people think of essential workers as public servants, mainly hospital staff but this picture shows that there were some unexpected jobs that were at one point labeled essential. This photo got some unexpected comments on Instagram like this one - "In that dark time, you helped people stay positive thru a pandemic man! That was the most essential work then." And this other one "But ice cream was essential during the pandemic! It was basically my only reason to live for a lil while." A lot of people found this picture funny but surprisingly many were quick to point out that it was the simple things, like mascots and ice cream, that kept us all smiling.
• 
  2020-05-29

  Working Remote Internship

  Everyday, in theory, I wake up around 7:30am to prepare for my 8am meetings. Most days I wake up 10 minutes before, roll over and turn on my company-issued computer. If my internship were to be in person, I would have to drive 20 minutes to the office building in a different city. I honestly would prefer to attend my internship in person, but I admit online internships have their advantages. For one, no one knows that I am lying down on my bed eating during meetings. I never have to excuse myself to use the restroom. I can grab a snack anytime I want and wear my pajamas. On the other hand, I like dressing up in business casual and making an effort to look good. I was even looking forward to waking up early to commute. I wanted to explore the big beautiful office and meet other interns. So while I do not mind a remote internship, part of me is constantly thinking about what could've been.
• 
  2020-05-20

  LaGuardia’s Ghost Town

  For my primary source, I selected a photograph I took of the gate house area in LaGuardia Airport in mid March of 2020. In the picture it shows several employees, sitting around doing nothing at all, the whole airport was a “ghost town”, meaning there were no passengers to assist with there tickets and gate claims, or any questions in general. During this time we were all nervous, not just nervous about COVID-19 and from the horrific scenes in the news, but also as an 11 year veteran in the airline industry, our jobs were on the line because of the decrease in flying, fear of flying, and the travel restrictions of no flying. With the airline burning 35 million dollars a day how can they pay 80,000 employees system wide I told myself. The airline soon told us system wide that it’s recommended we take a leave of absence at least a year with no pay to save the company or else there would be cuts, not including the 25% cut in our salary we took already. All week I was on the phone with my work partner talking everyday trying to figure what’s the plan. All these thoughts came racing three my head. What are we going to do? Do you think we will be fired or let go since we have seniority? Why I didn’t finish college 13 years ago and became lawyer or something. My job made us an offer, hey said take the year off with no pay, and your still have flying benefits for you and your family as always, and you will still have full medical benefits and we will pay your medical as well. After talking with my family, my fiancé, my partner from work, I decided on March 26th 2020, I was going to take the leave of absence. A whole year later April 26th of 2021 I finally came back to work full time, and the airport passenger count is starting to increase. The reason why I seated this primary source is because I would like historians to know the insides that us airline employees faced during these challenging times. I know many airline companies asked Congress for help in payroll support for the employees which majority of them did get including us, but we never saw that payroll support, nor did they call us back Early to work since they got some kind of support from the government, instead that money went in the stock market, and for bonuses to the CEO, and managers in the company. While I am happy and very fortunate to be back at work, it was very challenging as I’m sure it was for everyone, but one good thing that came out of it, 13 years later, a year ago from today. I was able to join the family of bronx community college, and focus on my education while I was off.
• 
  2021-04-28

  Can employers legally require COVID-19 vaccinations?

  As the COVID-19 vaccine becomes available to everyone, there are questions about whether or not an employer can require employees to get the vaccine. While making the vaccine required is well within the rights of an employer, it is unlikely this will happen. However, there are many places that are strongly recommending that employees get the vaccine.
• 
  2020-06-15

  A Tiresome Year

  During this first year of Covid-19 has taken place, I can sum it up in a single word "wearisome". When this pandemic started in the year 2020, the southern part of Texas seemed to be unyielding in the hustle and bustle of everyday life down here. The attitude and lack of being a courteous person continued until about the middle of July. This was the starting point of the pandemic begging to affect people enough to begin to take notice of this "uncertain time" as if a miracle the everyday average Joe wasn't hassling me for being wearing a mask. This tale of endless misery starts at the beginning of Covid-19 and stretches until the middle of June 2020. Some background information about the antagonist of this tale is a religious youth group of about twenty would come to every Thursday and order an obnoxious amount of items all very rudely. This instance in particular struck a chord with me. This one religious group of younger children (probably about eleven to fourteen) and an older gentleman named Moshi. This group I loathed, just for the sole reason that these children would run about with no mask and caring not for social distancing, and this gentleman was pushing these children to not follow CDC protocol. Well about after a good eight months these children and a new gentleman came in all wearing masks and seemingly decent and well-mannered. This new individual had replaced Moshi and lectured this devil-children about the importance of wearing a mask and being just at least a decent human. This religious youth group had come in and sat on our patio every Thursday and seemingly never once did these children follow protocol until Joel the new instructor stressed the importance of being not a walking health hazard. I and all of my co-workers appreciate that man greatly.
• 
  2021-02-28

  Transphobia

  From Drew Arrieta: Dolores "Lola" Gonzalez was an employee at a South Minneapolis Cub Foods for seventeen years. After asking management at the location to act on ongoing transphobic and discriminatory harassment received from co-workers and customers, she was dismissed from her position on February 17th. Yesterday, community members and customers rallied to show support for her and condemn Cub Foods for upholding transphobia.
• 
  2021-03-05

  Vaccinations at the University

  This photo shows people lined up to get COVID-19 vaccinations outside the Sun Devil Fitness Complex at Arizona State University in Tempe. My wife received an email from an ASU official sent about 8:00 PM Thursday, March 4 offering university employees access to a distribution of Moderna vaccines at clinics on March 5 and 9. My wife signed up right away and got an appointment for early afternoon on Friday, March 5. I have not been able to get my own appointment through other channels, so I went along with my wife to see if I might be able to get the vaccine. I was turned away, but fortunately my wife now has her first shot and an appointment for the second. It's a start.
• 
  2021-03-03

  Fast-food workers in LA face unmasked customers and unsafe workplaces, and are punished for speaking up about COVID-19, a damning new report says

  Fast food works in Los Angles have been found to be particularly vulnerable to COVID-19. This is because of a whole host of factors, including unmasked customers and lack of protocols. When employees raise a complaint about the issue, the restaurant punishes them by cutting their hours.
• 
  2021-01-28

  ASU COVID Saliva test

  I took my employee mandated COVID-19 test at 7:20 in the morning and recorded the process. Test result was negative. Transcript: Katy: All right, I’m taking my COVID test because ASU said that I needed to do it. It’s basically a saliva test. They give you a vile to spit into and a line that you have to meet. When I came in, somebody gave me the vile and wrote down my date of birth. I’ve got a straw. I’m just gonna fill this sucker up with saliva.
• 
  2020-10-29

  CDC’s Information For Office Buildings

  The CDC earlier this year released an article on employer information for office buildings. The article starts off with how employers can protect their staff and others and slow the spread. First and foremost a covid-19 workplace health and safety plan should be created for the business. They recommend an evaluation the building and mechanical and life safety systems to determine if the building is ready for occupancy. Second identify how workers might be exposed to covid-19. Identify any workplace hazards that could increase the risk of spreading. The inclusion of all employees in communication plans as well and contractors if any are involved. The CDC also encourages the education of employees and supervisors about steps they can take to protect themselves in the workplace.
• 
  2020-12-05

  How the pandemic made Instacart “essential”

  Article about the rise of instacart
• 2020-04-05

  Working during a Pandemic

  For my first artifact, I chose a photo taken in April 2020 of me wearing a sign telling people to stay six feet away at Agway of Cape Cod in Dennis, MA. It is shocking to think about now, but at this time I was not required to wear a face mask while at work. I have worked at Agway for several years and am familiar with the business, products, and customers. However, the experience I had at Agway this past spring was drastically different than what I was used to. Agway had implemented a curbside pick-up only method, meaning customers were no longer allowed to shop in person. This was very difficult for a lot of people, especially considering the elderly demographic that frequented Agway. Many customers were confused or angry about the system, despite its implementation as a method of protecting the health and safety of everyone – employees and customers alike. Agway had never before offered an online shopping option, but they quickly went to work creating a website complete with thousands of products to ensure the simplest and safest means of acquiring essential items like pet supplies that Agway provides for residents of Cape Cod. As a cashier, a typical sale during early COVID-19 times included a customer calling the store, the customer waiting on hold for anywhere between 30 seconds and 15 minutes for the next available employee, the customer listing their items for cashiers to “pick,” paying with card only over the phone, and finally an employee delivering the items to numbered parking spots. Needless to say, this process was a lot to handle and grow accustomed to, and was often very frustrating and stressful as both customers and employees learned together as humans how we were to alter our lives and routines in response to an unprecedented global pandemic.
• 
  2020-11-10

  産業医の診療もリモートで　生活習慣病など対応(2020年11月10日) - Remote medical care by occupational physicians for lifestyle-related diseases (November 10, 2020)

  テレワークの定着で産業医による診療も遠隔になりました。 　大和証券医務室・多田愼一郎センター長：「体調は悪くないですか？」 　本社勤務・50代男性：「特に問題ないですね」 　大和証券医務室・多田愼一郎センター長：「テレワークしていて運動もできているからいいですね」 　新型コロナウイルスをきっかけにすべての社員を対象に在宅勤務を導入した大和証券では、今月から産業医による診療をリモートで行っています。本社以外で勤務する社員も利用できるようになり、在宅勤務などの新しい働き方についても相談できるのが特長です。ただ、風邪などの症状には対応できないため、生活習慣病やアレルギーなどを中心に診察するということです。 With the normality of remote work, medical treatment by occupational physicians has become remote. Daiwa Securities Medical Office, Director Shinichiro Tada: "Are you feeling okay?" Working at the head office, male in his 50s: "No particular problem." Daiwa Securities Medical Office, Director Shinichiro Tada: "It’s good that you can do remote work and exercises at the same time.” Daiwa Securities, which introduced tele-commuting for all employees due to the new coronavirus provides medical care by occupational physicians remotely from this month. Employees who work outside the head office can also use it, and it is a feature that they can consult about new work styles such as working from home. However, the doctors do cannot take care of symptoms of colds but rather mainly examine lifestyle-related diseases and allergies. Video is translated by Youngbin Noh
• 
  2020-11-05

  Covid at Work

  In August, one of the employees that I worked with contracted Covid and our corporate failed to do anything about it at first. They had told us to "just wear our masks and wash our hands," and they had informed us that they weren't going to send out a cleaning team to deep clean the store. We all felt like our company failed us and didn't prioritize our wellbeing and safety. After this happened, I felt like there were other companies out there that react the same way to their staffs, and that the government, on both the local and federal level, should be enforcing Covid precautions and prevention processes with more urgency to protect all kinds of employees in their work environment
• 2020-10-27

  The New Smell of Walmart

  Walmart. Not known for being the cleanest and best smelling place on Earth. In the past, I’d walk in and there would be always be an odd stench. One that smelled of old moldy bread and burnt bacon. However, I was very used to the smell given that I’d usually stop by here once a month after lacrosse practice to pick up gatorade for the following practices. Once COVID-19 struck. Walmart’s smell has changed significantly. The employees are constantly cleaning, wiping down registers, mopping the tile, and spraying down the carts. Now a distinct smell of bleach fills the entire store. The mask that I wear in the store isn’t enough to block out the strong smell of bleach. It’s so strong that it stings my nose. I hope that the smell of bleach can die down and oddly enough return to the regular old smell.
• 
  2020-06-23

  Jackson County COVID-19 Employee Health Screening

  This was provided upon returning to work in June 2020 to all Jackson County and the County Tower Building employees.
• 
  2020-03

  Working at Weggies

  I started working at my job at Wegmans in January 2020. As a cashier, pandemic or not, you encounter many people. When the pandemic hit, everything changed so fast and so drastically. There were so many rules about employees washing hands frequently to mandatory masks to social distancing in line. They even limited how many people were in the store at a time. My job did the best they could given the circumstances, but it was still scary going to work. This virus does not make it easy to identify who has it and who does not. Whenever you go out, please where a mask and stand back. You don’t know how many people the employees see daily.
• 
  2020-08-10

  The New Normal

  I uploaded pictures as to how the COVI19 has impacted my everyday life. The first picture shows me working out of my room because we are all working from home now and this is the quietest place in my home. I basically do everything from my room now, sleep, work and eat, it really doesn’t feel like my sanctuary anymore. The second picture is with me and my children around the kitchen table. I feel like I am losing my sanity because I now play many different roles such as: teacher, employee, student and mother. It is hard for me to hold everything together nowadays but there is no other option. This is the new normal and we are trying to get better acquainted to it. I included a picture of my children waving to their great grandmother from our truck. In the beginning of COVID19 my children were not able to see their great grandmother because no one knew who may have the virus. We had to quarantine ourselves for about a month before my children were able to see their great grandmother. Me and my children are more appreciative of my grandmother now. We really did not pay attention to how much she meant to us until we weren't able to see her whenever we wanted to. The COVID19 pandemic has taught me to appreciate the things that I hold close to me like my family, friends, health and my job. I am very fortunate that no one near me has been infected with the virus and we are all healthy. I am very fortunate that I am able to work from home, still have my job and a roof over my head. My family is getting used to the new normal and everyday it does get easier. I just hope I still have my hair and my sanity by the end of this pandemic.
• 
  2020-05-24

  The new normal

  Shelter in place has been lifted. I decided to go inside Starbucks for the first time in months. The chairs and tables are now against the wall. There is a path marked for patrons that guide people from the door, then counter, then pick up, then exit out a different door. There is plexi-glass around the entire work area. The employees have a log-in station by the front door where they must wait until another barista comes to take their temperature before they are allowed to work (with a mask).
• 
  2020-04-07

  You Shall Pass

  The Hershey Company started having me work from home on March 17, 2020. I am a baker for the Hershey Company's baking products test kitchen. Since March I have been baking and working on recipes from home. In order to re-enter the building, I was required to take my temperature at home, photograph it, and present that photo to the security officer on duty. On April 7, 2020 I took a photograph of my temperature before leaving my house to restock my baking supplies from the test kitchen pantry. I presented this photo to security before filling out a health declaration form and signing into the building. Once I had been fully checked in I was able to collect the supplies I needed before signing out of the building. Since March 17th, I have only had to return to my work area twice to restock. Now Hershey has temperature check points that operate during specific windows of time and no longer requires employees to photograph their temperature. In this way, the Hershey Company has been able to accurately track employees in and out of the buildings in order to keep employees safe. The image shows a closeup of a thermometer reading 97 degrees.
• 
  05/18/2020

  Still Perkin' Employee Strike Flyer, New Orleans, LA

  A flyer describing why Still Perkin' employees are on strike after being called back to work during the COVID-19 pandemic and how the public can support them. Striking workers demand hazard pay, paid sick leave, PPE, safety protocols, and adherence to phase 1 safety guidelines. The Still Perkin' strikers connect their struggle to that of all New Orleans Hospitality works and striking sanitation workers.
• 
  04/23/2020

  #SHPRSspace: Part 8

  A staff member from Arizona State University's School of Historical, Philosophical and Religious Studies sharing their home workspace. Most ASU employees are working from home during the pandemic.
• 
  2020-04-01

  Sanitized Living

  In this image at a Gas Station named Bucees, they have put up warnings and instructions to wash and sanitize their hands before entering the gas station to prevent Covid-19 spread to employees.
• 
  2020-04-03

  Museum of Fine Arts, Boston COVID Response

  On April 3rd, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston joined museums around the country when it announced it would furlough between 325 and 340 of its 750 employees as part of the MFA's strategy to mitigate financial losses caused by the coronavirus. In a guerilla art installation, Boston artist Peter Agoos placed a surgical mask over Antonio López García’s sculpture “Day,” which stands outside the museum.
• 
  2020-03-27

  Therapy Dog Thor Visits West Jefferson Medical Center, Westwego, LA

  Therapy Dog Thor makes his rounds at the hospital providing some stress relief to staff during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• 
  2020-04-16

  McHardy's Chicken & Fixins Creates Pulley System to Maintain Social Distance, New Orleans, LA

  McHardy's Chicken & Fixins created a pulley system to allow their employees to maintain a safe social distance from customers during the COVID-19 pandemic. In New Orleans, restaurants are considered essential businesses and are allowed to operate for take-out and delivery only.
• 
  2020-04-11

  Call for economic subsidy for Peru's prison & jail employees

  #COVID_19 Es necesario evaluar un subsidio económico especial para el personal del @INPEgob. Ellas y ellos vienen laborando sin descanso en los penales en medio de crisis sanitaria provocada por #coronavirus. Su esfuerzo merece también reconocimiento nacional. #EstadoDeEmergencia
• 
  2020-03-26

  Petsmart moves pick up orders to curbside

  Being an employee of Petsmart, I have seen changes in the way that we operation on a daily basis. One example is how we do online pick up orders. On March 21, 2020, we moved all online pick orders to curb side pick order. Pet parents pull in to the designated parking spot, call the store, and then the associate that was designated the curbside pick up orders for the day, would answer the phone. We must ask for their name and then indicate on the iPad that they have picked up their order. We have started doing this to lower the foot traffic in the store. This is something that not only us as employees have to get use to but the pet parents as well.
• 
  03/22/2020

  John With Shrimp Boots

  John, a native of East Hampton, NY, continues to work at an “essential business”, the Rouse’s Grocery in New Orleans.