In case you missed it, the New York Times ran this graphic Saturday under an editorial headlined, “The Companies Putting Profits Ahead of Public Health.”
Follow the red arrow (which I’ve added to the illustration), and you’ll see Wegmans at about 2 o’clock.
Using survey data collected between February 2018 and November 2019, the Times estimated that about 43,000 people work for Wegmans without sick pay.
Workers can take paid sick days from their allotment of time off, which includes vacation days. All workers can take unpaid sick time.
Circumstances obviously have changed. (Though the policy should have been revised even before the coronavirus pandemic.)
The Times writes: “As the new coronavirus spreads across the United States, the time has come for restaurants, retailers and other industries that rely on low-wage labor to abandon their parsimonious resistance to paid sick leave.”
In a sporadically updated press release about its response to the virus, the company cites unspecified enhancements to its disability policy, as well as “a job-protected voluntary leave program.”
Wegmans employees are working hard, risking exposure to the virus as they provide a crucial service to the public.
Many of these people live paycheck to paycheck. Without paid sick leave, the incentive is for them to come to work even if they start having symptoms. The health of customers and fellow workers is jeopardized.
How much do grocery companies trust their minimum-wage employees not to abuse sick leave? Kroger, the nation’s largest supermarket chain, prefers to hire 12,000 employees rather than offer sick pay.
Wegmans, which annually touts its high rankings on the Fortune best-places-to-work list, has a deserved reputation for a management style that shows employee appreciation.
At the moment, as it demands more of its workers than ever, the company is failing to live up to that standard.
Update: Wegmans informed workers today that it would raise hourly pay by $2 during March and April. While the temporary raise is much appreciated, it does little to reduce the pressures to work while sick. For a full-time employee clocking 40 hours per week, the increase means $80 per paycheck in gross pay. For the many part-time workers at Wegmans, it translates to even less.