Covid hurts

 

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Covid-19 is back on the minds of America’s CEOs and school principals. 

A rise in Covid-19 cases and the approach of fall, when other respiratory illnesses start to spread, has revived discussion of how best to protect students and workers.

Few companies or schools are ready to reinstate anything approaching measures such as stringent masking rules that were common during the first years of the pandemic. But the rise in Covid-19 is a reminder that the virus retains power to disrupt learning and work.

“We’ve taken a pretty clear line that just says, please, for the love of God, if you’re not feeling well, don’t come in,” said Aaron Levie, chief executive officer of the technology company Box.

Levie said some Box workers have voluntarily worn masks recently or taken time off to care for sick relatives. The company has told employees, who are required to come in on Tuesdays and Thursdays if they live near its offices, that they can stay home if they are immunocompromised or don’t feel comfortable around others indoors.

“That’s just gotta be the approach,” Levie said. “We have to find a way to kind of move forward.” 

Diversified Automation has noted more Covid-19 cases among employees and their families at its offices in Las Vegas, Dallas and Louisville, Ky., as well as among workers on industrial construction sites. The company is managing them locally without introducing mandates, said Erika Tedesco, vice president of human resources. Office workers don’t have to wear masks and can work from home for now if it makes them more comfortable. 

“Seems like the cases are milder, but we are honoring the needs of our employees,” she said.

Lionsgate required employees to wear masks on two floors of its Santa Monica, Calif., offices for about a week in August following a rise in Covid-19 cases in Los Angeles. The movie and television production company said it was following orders from the county’s public-health department.

A few schools across the country have restored temporary masking mandates or suspended classes in recent weeks because of Covid-19. Most school mask mandates faded before the start of the 2022-2023 school year, and districts said they aren’t considering widespread reinstatements. The mandates were divisive. Opponents said they hindered learning while supporters said they prevented the spread of illness. 

In the 21,400-student Bibb County School District in Georgia, a few schools have had a handful of students test positive for Covid-19. Parents at the schools were notified, but mask or quarantine requirements weren’t reinstated. 

“We keep our eye on it,” said superintendent Dan Sims.

School leaders want to boost attendance rates this year and are hesitant to implement any Covid-19 mitigation measures that would keep students home. The Los Angeles Unified School District, which had among the strictest Covid-19 protocols and testing programs in the country, is urging families to send students to school even if they have mild cold symptoms.