This didn't hit me in the face until I started working about 6 years ago.
I was fortunate enough to go to college for finance on scholarships, get a job in my field, and eventually become self employed. I didn't get my first job until I graduated from college. I'm in my 20s and my mother is in her mid 50s. My mother has always worked paycheck-to-paycheck and still does to this day.
I used to be of that "survival of the fittest" mentality because my section of the finance industry was cutthroat. You either get on board or get left behind. At my old (and first) job, it was completely zero-sum. In order for me to get ahead, I had to bring other people down. Fortunately for me, I am no longer of that mentality. I'm saying this to say that is how the entire economy works, which I'm sure is no surprise to anyone. The people with the most amount of power to change that have no incentive to do so because it works for them. That's what keeps them on top, to have everyone fighting for the scraps that they "trickle down."
That brings me to my mother. My mother informed me last night that one of her coworkers tested positive for COVID. My mom and the rest of the staff at her job were required to get tested about 2 weeks ago. My mother tested negative, thankfully. This coworker had been absent that day so that coworker did not get tested. However, this coworker that about sick about a month ago and was out for about 2 weeks. The coworker eventually came back to work with a doctor's note, as management required him to do. However, the coworker's doctor did not test him for the virus (which I assume management didn't know that) but he got tested, on site, where they worked. They found that he was positive for COVID, but this was after he had been back to work for about 2 weeks. My mother works in the kitchen at a nursing facility. The infected coworker had been around my mother, in the facility's kitchen, around other facility staff and all other the building over the course of 2 weeks.
On one end, I want to place blame on that employee, but at the same time, I completely understood why this person would go back to work. They are given an impossible choice. The company that runs the food services there offers:
1) Shitty pay (between $9 to $14 an hour)
2) Max 35 hour weeks, with no overtime opportunity
3) No paid time off other than 2 weeks vacation time
4) No health benefit at all
This person has no other real options, other than go to work so that they can afford to live. The job doesn't want to pay decently, wants to cap any opportunity to make extra money, and offer no health benefits... and this is a large company. I'm told that they're going to shut everything down for 2 weeks (without pay) and have all employees tested for COVID again. It's possible my mother could have gotten infected, and additionally, may be out of a job because of it.
It's things like this that will keep this virus spreading. A rigged game is helping this virus.
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