25-66’s lack of Coronavirus response plan

[sinklair]

As Michigan now has confirmed cases of Coronavirus and journalists are sent out to cover community response to this global outbreak, 25-66’s response to potentially putting their staff in harm’s way? Wipe down your desk with Clorox wipes and stay home unpaid if you’re infected while doing your job. It’s amazing that one of the biggest local broadcasters in the country doesn’t have a better plan on how to reduce the spread of infection in the workplace. No wonder why low paid employees are leaving the business when you’re told your company isn’t going to support you if you become ill doing the job informing viewers.

Here’s the weak corporate memo sent to staff:

Subject: Sinclair & Coronavirus
BCC: All Sinclair Employees

Sinclair remains dedicated to the health and safety of our employees and their families. Given the ongoing spread of coronavirus (COVID-19), Sinclair employees are encouraged to refrain from all non-essential business travel until further notice and utilize skype/video conferencing when possible and practical. Employees can determine what travel is essential for their role and if you need guidance on determining whether your business travel is essential, please reach out to your supervisor for further direction. In addition, employees are advised against traveling (for essential business or personal reasons) to countries identified by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as having "widespread or sustained community transmission" of COVID-19. Currently, those countries are China, Iran, Italy, Japan and South Korea, but please be aware that this list may change. While we know these restrictions may cause inconvenience or changes to your plans, your well-being is our priority and this guidance is designed with that in mind.

Additionally, if you believe that you or anyone in your household has come in contact with someone who has been exposed to COVID-19 or someone who has recently returned from one of the five countries identified above, please notify your supervisor before reporting to work. As always, please refrain from coming to work when ill and contact your supervisor or your HR business partner if you are not feeling well to discuss appropriate next steps. We will continue to keep you apprised of any further developments regarding the impact of COVID-19 on our Company as the situation warrants.

Additional information and resources from the Center for Disease Control and the World Health Organization on disease prevention: CDC: https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-nc ... index.html WHO: https://www.who.int/docs/default-source ... vid-19.pdf

[sinklair]

Here’s the detailed plan from 25-66’s ASSistant GM:

“Don’t panic! Wash your darn hands, clean/disinfect surfaces and be mindful of your symptoms.”

This is why we don’t trust 25-66 management to do the right thing if this disease spreads and we’re at risk while doing our job as front-line informers.

[sinklair]

Also not helpful: 25 owner Armstrong Williams. Instead of making sure his station’s staff have what they need to be safe, he instead just sends his musings via Facebook posts:

‪”The Bible has declared these days to come...locusts, disease, and famine among the land. I’m not saying that’s what we’re seeing today with the #coronavirus because I don’t know the mind of God. I am saying this though...be ye ready for whatever times we find ourselves in. ‬

‪Has anyone else thought about the possibility that what’s happening today might be Biblical? If you’re a believer, it might be time to go back to the Bible and read Revelation, Ecclesiastes, etc. That will help you understand the times we’re living in today.”

[audiophile]

I don't see anything they're doing wrong here.

[sinklair]

Audio: 25-66’s plan amounts to wash your hands and stay home unpaid for two plus weeks if you need to be quarantined.

When you’re making wages barely above minimum wage and don’t get two weeks of sick leave, this is a disincentive for journalists to take appropriate steps to protect themselves and their coworkers if you have to choose between staying home or going to work to pay bills.

A company like Sinclair Broadcasting should have a better plan than what they sent us. Hopefully, like R Bedell says, this turns into nothing. But we shouldn’t have to financially suffer for doing our jobs for a penny pinching company that doesn’t want to pay its employees to stay home while under a company imposed quarantine.

[Beerbong]

Audio: 25-66’s plan amounts to wash your hands and stay home unpaid for two plus weeks if you need to be quarantined.

When you’re making wages barely above minimum wage and don’t get two weeks of sick leave, this is a disincentive for journalists to take appropriate steps to protect themselves and their coworkers if you have to choose between staying home or going to work to pay bills.

A company like Sinclair Broadcasting should have a better plan than what they sent us. Hopefully, like R Bedell says, this turns into nothing. But we shouldn’t have to financially suffer for doing our jobs for a penny pinching company that doesn’t want to pay its employees to stay home while under a company imposed quarantine.

Stink
Don’t you get 40 hours sick time like normal people?

[sinklair]

Beer: yes. 40 hours of sick time is one week’s pay. Quarantine time has been two weeks. That potentially leaves people with a week or more unpaid.

By not addressing this upfront leaves uncertainty that could be dangerous if people don’t self report or voluntarily stay home if they come down with symptoms. They shouldn’t have to choose between staying home or losing pay.

Hopefully nothing happens, but that’s why this lack of preparation and communication by SBG is troubling. Others like Gray have sent out better detailed sick leave plans. Some businesses and communities are getting ahead of it by extending sick leave to part timers or others who might not traditionally be eligible for those benefits.

[sinklair]

The name is Sinklair... not Stink. If you want to save a couple of keystrokes, just go with Sink. But you’re pretty dense (not a good thing) so you will probably make more mistakes.

[Beerbong]

The name is Sinklair... not Stink. If you want to save a couple of keystrokes, just go with Sink. But you’re pretty dense (not a good thing) so you will probably make more mistakes.

Stink is just fine.

[Beerbong]

Beer: yes. 40 hours of sick time is one week’s pay. Quarantine time has been two weeks. That potentially leaves people with a week or more unpaid.

By not addressing this upfront leaves uncertainty that could be dangerous if people don’t self report or voluntarily stay home if they come down with symptoms. They shouldn’t have to choose between staying home or losing pay.

Hopefully nothing happens, but that’s why this lack of preparation and communication by SBG is troubling. Others like Gray have sent out better detailed sick leave plans. Some businesses and communities are getting ahead of it by extending sick leave to part timers or others who might not traditionally be eligible for those benefits.

The reason I ask is, it is common knowledge that starting in 2020 your employer allows you to carry over as much as 40 hours of sick
time. Up to 80 hours a year. Example: If you had 30 hours of unused sick time in 2019, starting in 2020 you would have 70 hours of sick time.
I’m sure you knew that right?
Maybe not.
I know you’re super busy being an advocate for workers in YOUR plant.
Maybe like the soup or Coco, it just slipped your mind.

#notthere#bullshit

[sinklair]

You’re assuming that no one ever gets sick, has a child get sick, has to have a medical procedure done, has the birth of a child, has an immediate relative (spouse, child, patent) get sick where they have to take sick leave to care for them....

So you’re making assumptions that don’t apply to most people in your Pollyanna world.

[Beerbong]

Well Stink, the question was, don’t you get 40 hours of sick time?
Your response, Beer: yes. 40 hours of sick time is one week’s pay. Quarantine time has been two weeks. That potentially leaves people with a week or more unpaid.

The benefits at your plant were increased at the beginning of 2020.
You didn’t know about the expanded benefits.

It doesn’t matter how people use the time. That’s irrelevant.
The fact you didn’t know about the expanded benefits is alarming.
Why don’t you know about the change to your benefits plan?
I’ll bet if you ask anyone there, they would know about it.
Why don’t you?

#nottobetrusted#fullofshit#

Edited!

[sinklair]

Unless you work at 25-66, you don’t know what communication has taken place. You have said you don’t work here. Care to revise your lies?

And I was responding to the notion that everyone was going to have 80 hours of available sick time — which just isn’t the case for most of us... because, you know, life happens.

By the way, your lame use of hashtags makes you look my grandpa trying to be cool. It’s not. Just makes you look even more troll-ish (not sure that’s even a real word, but it fits in your case).

#trolls-gotta-troll

[Beerbong]

Unless you work at 25-66, you don’t know what communication has taken place. You have said you don’t work here. Care to revise your lies?

And I was responding to the notion that everyone was going to have 80 hours of available sick time — which just isn’t the case for most of us... because, you know, life happens.

By the way, your lame use of hashtags makes you look my grandpa trying to be cool. It’s not. Just makes you look even more troll-ish (not sure that’s even a real word, but it fits in your case).

#trolls-gotta-troll

All I have to do is sit in a bar with friends to find out what’s going on over there.
By the way, everyone I talked to there thinks you’re an idiot.
#Whitehorse.
You were responding to my question. You said 40 hours. You didn’t know.
For someone that professes to be so smart you really are stupid.

Keep on spinning!
#grandpakicksstinksassagain

[sinklair]

White Horse is two words. If you can’t even get the little things right, why should I believe anything you say?

And your statement assumes that you have friends... which we both know is a lie. Acquaintances maybe. People who are within a 20-foot radius is what they would more likely call themselves.

You still haven’t addressed my salient (look it up, sound out the big words) that very few people — including the ASSistant GM who seems to get sick on Fridays and Mondays to extend her weekends — have anywhere close to 40 hours of banked sick time. So your argument still doesn’t hold any weight, grandpa.