Coronavirus News

Report Blasts Head of Massachusetts Care Center Where 76 Veterans Died From COVID

The leader of a veterans’ care center in Massachusetts where 76 veterans died after contracting the coronavirus in the spring of 2020 lacked both the leadership skills and the temperament to run such a facility when he was hired in …

California Cites Agencies, Foster Farms $3.8M for COVID-19 Sick Leave Violations

The California Labor Commissioner’s Office cited three temporary staffing agencies as well as joint employers Foster Farms, LLC and Foster Poultry Farms nearly $3.8 million for failure to inform 3,476 temporary workers of their available COVID-19 supplemental paid sick leave. …

Popular Garlic Festival in California Canceled over Insurance, Pandemic

This year’s edition of California’s beloved Gilroy Garlic Festival has been canceled and the annual event’s future is uncertain, organizers announced. The celebration of the pungent vegetable has been held for more than 40 years, drawing huge crowds over three …

Worker Died of COVID After Staff Meeting at Washington Business

An investigation into the COVID-19 death of a worker at a Sumner, Washington, fish processing plant found company leaders knowingly putting workers at risk of exposure to the virus. The Washington state Department of Labor & Industries cited and fined …

California to Keep Workplace Pandemic Rules Through 2022

California workplace regulators are poised to extend mandatory pay for workers affected by the coronavirus through the end of 2022, more than two months after state lawmakers restored similar benefits through September. The decision again pits management against labor as …

Lawsuit Challenges Reinstatement of Philadelphia’s Mask Mandate

Several businesses and residents have filed suit in state court in Pennsylvania seeking to overturn Philadelphia’s renewed indoor mask mandate scheduled to be enforced beginning Monday in an effort to halt a surge in COVID-19 infections. The lawsuit, filed in …

Philadelphia to Restore Indoor Mask Mandate Amid Covid Case Surge

Philadelphia is reinstating its indoor mask mandate after reporting a sharp increase in coronavirus infections, the city’s top health official announced Monday. Confirmed COVID-19 cases have risen more than 50% in 10 days, the threshold at which the city’s guidelines …

Denial of Restaurants’ Claim Upheld in First Covid-19 Ruling by a New York Appeals Court

An insurer has been upheld in its denial of coverage in a first ruling on Covid-19 business interruption insurance by a New York appellate court. The appeals court upheld a New York county court—and said it agreed with various other …

Omicron Sidelined 7% of Restaurant Chain’s Workers in January

One of the largest restaurant chains in the U.S. said that more than 13,000 employees missed work in January, due to the omicron variant of the coronavirus. Orlando-based Darden Restaurants, owner of Olive Garden, LongHorn Steakhouse and other restaurants, said …

China Battling Multiple Coronavirus Outbreaks; Shuts Business Hub Shenzhen

TAIPEI, Taiwan — China banned most people from leaving a coronavirus-hit northeastern province and mobilized military reservists Monday as the fast-spreading “stealth omicron” variant fuels the country’s biggest outbreak since the start of the pandemic two years ago. The National …