Petition is successful with 209 signatures
To: CEO Rick Wright
Market of Choice Employees for COVID-19 Hazard Pay
CEO Rick Wright has announced hazard pay for all Market of Choice employees! Thank you for making this happen and setting an example for grocery companies everywhere!
UPDATE: Our covid-19 pay (which they called "extra workload premium pay") came to an end in July. A new petition has been created to reinstate our "premium pay"!
https://www.coworker.org/petitions/moc-workers-united-for-hazard-pay-2
As many states have called for social isolation measures to slow the spread of COVID-19 according to CDC guidelines, many businesses have closed their doors for the safety of the public and their employees. Grocery stores are one of two types of essential public establishments that must continue to operate. While other types of industry have been put on pause until further notice, employees of grocery stores must face large portions of the local population each day, and interact within close proximity. These employees are facing a much higher level of exposure than the rest of the population, on all seven days of the week.
While Market of Choice has been seeing record breaking sales within each of their multiple Oregon locations in most recent weeks, we employees are asking for the benefit of hazard pay, at the rate of at least $3 extra per hour or more, from now until the time this public health crisis subsides. Hazard pay is a good start for compensating employees for the very real risk they face every work day. Market of Choice would be setting a good example for other grocery companies with employees who deserve the same benefit.
Why is this important?
According to the UN, hazard pay is “a form of compensation granted to staff members who have been requested to remain and report for work in duty stations where very hazardous conditions, such as war or active hostilities, prevailed and where the evacuation of families and nonessential staff had taken place.”
Employees are experiencing elevated anxiety and fear as they continue their regularly scheduled shifts at the eye of the pandemic storm, especially those who are considered at-risk. Hazard pay would go a long way in terms of increasing morale and knowing their employers recognize the hard work and health risks they face amid this global crisis.
