Hi guys! So the fashion company that I work for is doing a really awful job of keeping their employees safe in the office during the pandemic. The CEO openly walks around the office without wearing a mask and he basically thinks that COVID is a myth. They don’t offer masks in the office and they aren’t cleaning the shared spaces like they should.
We recently got an email last Friday notifying us that an employee that had been coming into work tested positive for COVID and we might have been exposed to the virus. That exact day, I went to CityMD to get tested for COVID. Today I got my results back and I tested positive even though I am asymptomatic. I believe that I was exposed to the virus by coming into work almost every day. I have a strong urge to report my company to the NY Department of Labor because of their lack of care during these times and not keeping their employees safe.
Does anyone have history in reporting their employer to the Department of Labor? Please share if you have!
I’m not in this situation, but I don’t feel the Department of Labor is the best place to file a complaint…or at least not the ONLY place. You should file a complaint through OSHA (Occupational Safety & Health Administration).
Whether or not your employer feels Covid-19 is “real” or not (and if he feels it’s not, he’s an absolute Cretin…about 10 to 12 people who live in my apartment building have DIED from Covid-19 so far, of all ages), he still has an obligation to take preventative measures. Also, I’m curious…does he make snide comments or complain when employees wear masks, or ask for social distance measures, does he dismiss the need for having adequate spacing between employee’s workspaces? Is he so strong on his stance to the point where staff actually fear wearing masks, thinking if they do, they would be looked upon in a negative light and potentially lose their job? Are the high traffic office areas (such as bathrooms, kitchen/break area, and printers) cleaned more than a few times a day? The instructions of what you have to do are included in the link below. To support your claim, you must also provide dates and explanations of when things were requested/said/occurred, verbal or written/proof with any other helpful info to state your claim (copies of emails, photos, whatever applicable).
I think you should definitely report them.
A lot of companies are being careless.
Did they quarantine everyone who had contact with the person you tested positive? Are you quarantining? You can possibly still spread this thing even though you’re asymptomatic.
The company I’m working for had all their employees sign a waiver, so if someone got sick, they are not liable. This will not hold up in NYS courts, but if you didn’t sign it, they basically considered that as you resigning…
That been said, they have shown their true colors and I’m actively looking to get out of there. They dont care about the health and safety of their employees, which it sounds like your company is on the same tip.
Hi there! I am quarantining for the next week and a half since I just tested positive for it but the company is not quarantining anyone that had contact with the other person that tested positive for it. We didn’t sign a waiver but they sent an email pretty much saying that we come into the office at our risk and that even when we go outside we get exposed to the virus. Although this is true, it’s really shitty to put that in an email knowing that there’s a chance we got exposed to the virus at work. Also, the company is literally putting everyone at risk and prioritizing company over people. It’s really sad and unfortunate! This company has truly shown their true colors over the past couple of months and I am actively trying to find a new job to get out of this hellhole!
Ugh this is terrible and exactly what I’m waiting to have happen at my current job. We were all told masks must be worn at all times in the office but the boss NEVER wears one and I don’t feel comfortable telling him to, nor should that be my job. I have mentioned it a few times to upper management, but they are just as bad. The entitled attitude of rich people kills me
Your employer has a legal responsibility to provide you with a safe work environment. During a pandemic, when all of these precautions have been put in place and mandated, they are at the very least to provide you with a clean work environment and masks to wear, if they can not distance the office workers. I’m in CO and I literally just dealt with this with my last CEO - also thought it was a conspiracy theory and that it was all fake… I even shared with him that I had two people in my extended family pass from it… still nothing. Even now, with state mandated mask wearing in office spaces when you are not at your desk or able to distance from eachother, ikt was a challenge and I felt like it was a joke for him and a few others to even wear masks. Once I left, I was informed none of them wear masks now and they certainly dont keep the distance - in addition, they travel with reckless abandon and dont use any precautions. It was like working in a frat house. If I didnt already have other issues going on with the company, I would have filed with the Department of Labor and the Department of Health & Human Services. Good luck and glad to hear you are asymptomatic! One of the lucky ones!
At my friends company one of the bosses was smoking in office. Somebody complained to the NY dept. and they recieved some kind of letter maybe even a fine.
I say go ahead, try do anonymous if you are afraid for retaliation
I recently heard a report on NPR about OSHA being almost non-functional right now. I think there is a link on the NY gov Covid website to report it, so try searching there. Best of luck.
I’m so sorry this has happened to you! Glad you are OK, but wow still so upsetting.
I work in LA and snitched on my workplace to the city, ha. Very few masks being worn (or worn properly!), no social distancing, very little cleaning and people are sharing supplies. Yes the boss/owners make snide covid remarks too. I didn’t feel bad at all reporting them. People’s safety needs to be put first (especially since we all have the option at this company to work from home!). I’m sure nothing came of it, maybe a letter was sent to the business or a safety officer came to check it out at most. I didn’t hear anything about it except one manager of one department suddenly got serious about their team complying with social distancing and mask wearing a couple weeks after.
I would google something like “report non-compliant covid business NYC” to find the appropriate department to report them. The mayor of LA encouraged employees to report businesses not complying with current safety regulations.
My boss has been bragging about how he has been going to weddings in the “community” with over 300 people and no one wears masks except the old people- he said covid is over.
Contact New York Department of HEALTH. Just dial 311, they will take your complaint and begin their investigation. A rep will then show up to the worksite unannounced and conduct their investigation. It’s all anonymous. They will give you a reference number so you can check the status of their investigation. Hope this helps!
NYC and NY State were both TERRIBLE during the pandemic (still are). I’m not sure people will have much luck winning lawsuits against a government that told people to go out AFTER travel from China was banned by the Feds…
Oh, I don’t know, how about talking to the owner? I mean with so many jobs available, and the industry do just so darn well, might as well help shut down another business, right?
Remember, the single worst phrase you’ll ever hear is, "I’m from the government, I’m here to help . . . "
Just wondering, if the owner thinks covid isn’t real then what would be the point/outcome of talking to the owner? Also, that employee would then have a target on their back for bringing it up…better to do it anonymously to the state…
hmmmm…
I find that scenario highly unlikely. A fine from the state or slap on the wrist seems more probable.
At the very least that company should work from home for a few days while a cleaning company comes in to disinfect but it sounds like nothing was done to protect the employees.
Report them; look up your local health department, look online about reporting the situation. Your boss and company cannot be playing with people’s lives. Report them. That’s why so much of this crap gets hidden under the rug because people are afraid to say anything. These multi-million $ companies do not care about their average employee.
So please, report them; if the business gets shut down for a few weeks, so be it. Your boss needs to be called out because this has nothing to do with whether he “believes” Covid19 is real or not. The FACT is it is real. Almost 200,000 in this country have died. It is all about the facts, so his opinion doesn’t matter.
And with your positive test and being asymptomatic, you are spreading the virus. This thing is never going to go away if we don’t hunker in properly.
