My colleague Margot Roosevelt covered
workplace-related complaints and lawsuits trickling in as part of our recent
One of her findings: It’s unclear exactly how these disputes will turn out. “We’ve not had anything like this pandemic in a hundred years,” UC Berkeley law professor Catherine Fisk told Roosevelt. “And employment laws were developed fairly recently when infectious diseases were not a major threat, other than the annual flu.”
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That said, here are some commonly asked questions about employees’ rights as they return to in-person work, based on Roosevelt’s reporting.
Can your boss require you to get vaccinated?
Can you refuse to be vaccinated and keep your job?
Can you sue if the colleague in the next cubicle won’t wear a mask?
As the COVID-19 pandemic abates in California, many employees who have worked from home for months will soon return to the office with no clear-cut answers on how to navigate coronavirus-related issues. Some are happy to go back. Others not so much.
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Companies are obligated by law to provide safe workplaces a challenge as the virus continues to circulate, albeit at a lessening pace. With many white-collar workers still fearing exposure, labor lawyers predict a surge in complaints to workplace safety agencies and related lawsuits.
Covid-19 News: All U.S. States Are Now Offering Vaccines to Teachers
Last Updated
March 24, 2021, 7:47 a.m. ETMarch 24, 2021, 7:47 a.m. ET
The C.D.C. says vaccinated people may meet indoors in small, private groups but warns they still need masks in public. New York City public high schools are scheduled to reopen on March 22.
Here’s what you need to know:
A nurse administering a dose of the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine on Monday at a clinic for Catholic school educators in Los Angeles.Credit.Patrick T. Fallon/Agence France-Presse Getty Images
As of Monday, all K-12 educators nationwide are officially eligible to be vaccinated against Covid-19, though the situation is more straightforward in some states than others.