Free Daily Headlines :

  • COVID-19
  • Vaccine Info
  • Money
  • Politics
  • Education
  • Health
  • Justice
  • More
    • Environment
    • Economic Development
    • Gaming
    • Investigations
    • Social Services
    • TRANSPORTATION
  • Opinion
    • CT Viewpoints
    • CT Artpoints
DONATE
Reflecting Connecticut’s Reality.
    COVID-19
    Vaccine Info
    Money
    Politics
    Education
    Health
    Justice
    More
    Environment
    Economic Development
    Gaming
    Investigations
    Social Services
    TRANSPORTATION
    Opinion
    CT Viewpoints
    CT Artpoints

LET�S GET SOCIAL

Show your love for great stories and out standing journalism

Grocery store workers ‘disgusted’ with Lamont’s new COVID-19 vaccine policy

  • Vaccine Info
  • by Keith M. Phaneuf
  • February 23, 2021
  • View as "Clean Read" "Exit Clean Read"

Cloe Poisson :: CTMirror.org

Danny Esposito, of Simsbury, (left) takes a customer’s temperature before allowing her to enter LaBonne’s Market in Watertown last spring.

Unions representing thousands of grocery store workers vented their frustration Monday night with Gov. Ned Lamont’s decision not to prioritize the group in the next wave of coronavirus vaccinations.

“We’re disgusted, we’re frustrated,” said Mark Espinosa, president of Local 919 of the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union, which represents about 7,000 Stop & Shop grocery chain employees in Connecticut. “They are front line employees. They are essential. Let’s face it, if they’re not in the stores, people are not eating.”

“In the first weeks and months of the pandemic, our members were considered heroes,” said Ronald Petronella, president of UFCW Local 371, which represents about 5,000 supermarket workers statewide.

Lamont abandoned the state’s previous methodology for a vaccination rollout, which had prioritized people with underlying medical conditions and certain types of workers in essential, high-risk jobs.

But the governor’s announcement Monday — which ironically was made the same day the national Food Industry Association celebrated “Supermarket Employee Day” — shifted to a priority system that is strictly age-based, with one exception: school employees and child care providers. The next round of shots will open March 1 to people who are between ages 55 and 64, teachers and others who work in schools, and day care workers.

[Breaking with national recommendations, Lamont says Connecticut’s vaccine rollout will now be prioritized by age]

Besides grocery story workers, the administration also had been considering giving priority in this next phase to transportation workers, as well as people 16 and older who have underlying health conditions like heart disease and diabetes, and teachers and other school staff. Only the last group is being given priority in Lamont’s new plan.

The governor said he would focus more vaccines on urban centers because of their larger populations. But some advocates also pressed for the next wave to place even more emphasis on cities, which not only have been hit hardest by COVID-19, but are home to many low-income residents who can’t afford quality health care or work retail or service jobs that can’t be performed remotely from home.

Lamont’s new approach drew sharp criticism Monday both from the CT NAACP and from the Connecticut ACLU.

“We agree with and are in solidarity with those calling out this plan as inequitable,” the ACLU chapter tweeted. “It is. Disability rights, racial justice and workers’ rights groups, we see you, and all the ways Gov. Lamont is leaving marginalized people behind.”

Espinosa asked, hypothetically, why a grocery store worker age 54 would not be prioritized when a healthy 55-year-old, with good health insurance and a higher-paying job that can be performed safely from home, is next in line for a vaccination?

“The members were looking for a little bit of security, a little bit of relief,” he said. “They’re at risk every day.”

Petronella added that more than 30,100 unionized grocery workers have been exposed or infected since the pandemic began, including hundreds of UFCW members across Connecticut.

“Those exposures lead additional employees to be quarantined from work, and each case has a widespread ripple effect,” he added. “There is also no way to count the number of customers exposed by each infected member. Getting our members who serve in these essential functions vaccinated as quickly as possible is imperative to the health of our entire state.”

[Who can get vaccinated against COVID in Connecticut, and when? Here’s what you need to know.]

The governor said other states, which have prioritized vaccinations by job title and by residents’ underlying health conditions, have struggled with confusion.

“I’m going to focus on the old business motto, KISS: Keep it simple, stupid, because a lot of complications result from states that tried to finely slice the salami and it got very complicated to administer,” Lamont said.

But Connecticut’s situation has not been without its own complications.

Lamont has acknowledged complaints about residents with ties to doctors and hospitals “jumping the line” and getting vaccinated.

While the coalition representing hundreds of nonprofit social service agencies stopped short of criticizing the administration, the CT Community Nonprofit Alliance pushed for clarification that thousands of community-based caregivers in Connecticut receive top priority.

Gian-Carl Casa, president and CEO of the CT Community Nonprofit Alliance, said many of the thousands of social workers employed by his members have been vaccinated. But, while he didn’t have specific totals, others still have not been recognized as essential healthcare workers.

“They’ve drawn the line in places that aren’t always easy to discern,” Casa said.

Connecticut spends about $1.4 billion annually hiring community-based nonprofits to deliver the bulk of state-sponsored social services. Collectively that spending is close to the budgets for the Departments of Transportation, Motor Vehicles and Correction combined.

The alliance represents hundreds of nonprofits with about 190,000 employees — two-thirds of whom are in the human services field.

“It’s good news that there is enough supply and a plan to get more people vaccinated,” Casa added. “But we hope that frontline caregivers and the most vulnerable people they serve continue to be a priority.”

Sign up for CT Mirror's free daily news summary.

Free to Read. Not Free to Produce.

The Connecticut Mirror is a nonprofit newsroom. 90% of our revenue comes from people like you. If you value our reporting please consider making a donation. You'll enjoy reading CT Mirror even more knowing you helped make it happen.

YES, I'LL DONATE TODAY

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Keith M. Phaneuf A winner of numerous journalism awards, Keith Phaneuf has been CT Mirror’s state finances reporter since it launched in 2010. The former State Capitol bureau chief for The Journal Inquirer of Manchester, Keith has spent most of 31 years as a reporter specializing in state government finances, analyzing such topics as income tax equity, waste in government and the complex funding systems behind Connecticut’s transportation and social services networks. A former contributing writer to The New York Times, Keith is a graduate of and a former journalism instructor at the University of Connecticut.

SEE WHAT READERS SAID

RELATED STORIES
CT teachers are expected to get vaccinated for COVID at local clinics, but other options could cause problems
by Dave Altimari

School employees could end up on two lists, which means some vaccine might go to waste, officials said.

Black and Hispanic residents continue to be vaccinated against COVID at lower rates than white residents
by Kasturi Pananjady and Jenna Carlesso

Among those 65 and older, the rate of vaccination for white residents was 39%, compared to 21% for Black residents.

As mass vaccination centers take the lead in the COVID race, the push is on to reach the most vulnerable
by Dave Altimari

While mass vaccination sites have helped overall vaccination rates, they have not reached the state's most vulnerable populations.

Governor says frustrations with vaccine rollout should be with CDC guidelines
by Adria Watson

Lamont also said 30,000 doses of new J&J vaccine could arrive next week

Disability Rights CT files federal complaint over age-based vaccine rollout
by Kelan Lyons

The complaint alleges the state's age-based vaccine distribution plan discriminates against people with disabilities.

Support Our Work

Show your love for great stories and outstanding journalism.

$
Select One
  • Monthly
  • Yearly
  • Once
Artpoint painter
CT ViewpointsCT Artpoints
Opinion Gas pipeline will threaten water quality, wildlife and wetlands
by Susan Eastwood

The Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection has granted tentative approval of the 401 water quality certification for the Pomfret to Killingly natural gas pipeline. I urge DEEP to deny the 401 certification, as the proposed pipeline would violate the Connecticut’s water quality standards, and the conditions in the draft certification fail to protect our streams, wetlands, and wildlife.

Opinion Connecticut and the other Connecticut. Which will endure?
by Ezra Kaprov

What comes to mind when you hear the word ‘Connecticut’? Possibly, you think of a 43-year-old Puerto Rican man who arrived here with his family following Hurricane Maria. He works full-time as a machinist at the Sikorsky plant, and he coaches a prizefighter on the side.

Opinion COVID-19 increases urgency for legislature to pass medical aid-in-dying law
by Dr. Gary Blick

The COVID-19 crisis has exposed the profound tragedy of loved ones dying alone, in a hospital or nursing home, without the care and comfort of loved ones surrounding them. This pandemic also demonstrates the fragility of life, the limits of modern medicine to relieve suffering, and has magnified the systemic racial disparities in our healthcare system, resulting in higher hospitalization and death rates for people in communities of color. We must eradicate these disparities, so everyone has equal access to the full range of end-of-life care options.

Opinion Three fallacies and the truth about vaccines
by Kerri M. Raissian, Ph.D. and Dr. Jody Terranova

Connecticut’s Public Health Committee recently heard public testimony regarding HB6423 and SB568 --  bills that would remove the religious exemption (the medical exemption would rightfully remain in place) from vaccination in order to attend school.  The religious exemption allows parents to effectively opt their children out of vaccines. In doing so, these families can still send their children to Connecticut’s schools, daycares, colleges, and camps.  This places other children at risk of contracting vaccine-preventable illnesses, and it is imperative the Connecticut legislature remove this exception.

Artwork Grand guidance
by Anne:Gogh

In a world of systemic oppression aimed towards those of darker skintones – representation matters. We are more than our equity elusive environments, more than numbers in a prison and much more than victims of societal dispositions. This piece depicts a melanated young man draped in a cape ascending high above multiple forms of oppression. […]

Artwork Shea
by Anthony Valentine

Shea is a story about race and social inequalities that plague America. It is a narrative that prompts the question, “Do you know what it’s like to wake up in new skin?”

Artwork The Declaration of Human Rights
by Andres Chaparro

Through my artwork I strive to create an example of ideas that reflect my desire to raise social consciousness, and cultural awareness. Jazz music is the catalyst to all my work, and plays a major influence in each piece of work.”

Artwork ‘A thing of beauty. Destroy it forever’
by Richard DiCarlo | Derby

During times like these it’s often fun to revisit something familiar and approach things with a different slant. I have been taking some Pop culture and Art masterpieces and applying the vintage 1960’s and 70’s classic figures (Fisher Price, little people) to the make an amusing pieces. Here is my homage to Fisher -Price, Yellow […]

Twitter Feed
A Twitter List by CTMirror

Engage

  • Reflections Tickets & Sponsorships
  • Events
  • Donate
  • Newsletter Sign-Up
  • Submit to Viewpoints
  • Submit to ArtPoints
  • Economic Indicator Dashboard
  • Speaking Engagements
  • Commenting Guidelines
  • Legal Notices
  • Contact Us

About

  • About CT Mirror
  • Announcements
  • Board
  • Staff
  • Sponsors and Funders
  • Donors
  • Friends of CT Mirror
  • History
  • Financial
  • Policies
  • Strategic Plan

Opportunity

  • Advertising and Sponsorship
  • Speaking Engagements
  • Use of Photography
  • Work for Us

Go Deeper

  • Steady Habits Podcast
  • Economic Indicator Dashboard
  • Five Things

The Connecticut News Project, Inc. 1049 Asylum Avenue, Hartford, CT 06105. Phone: 860-218-6380

© Copyright 2021, The Connecticut News Project. All Rights Reserved. Website by Web Publisher PRO