Coronavirus pandemic update, USA

Strikes, protests continue against unsafe working conditions amid coronavirus pandemic. By Marcus Day, 6 April 2020. Workers are asserting their own interests with increasing forcefulness, while capitalist governments are preoccupied with how quickly they can restart production and renew the flow of profits.

As COVID-19 death toll rises, the ruling classes agitate for a premature return to work. 6 April 2020 As the surgeon general of the United States warned that the coming week will be “our 9/11 moment,” President Trump demanded that the government stop “paying people to stay home”: here.

US auto companies push for return to work at parts distribution centers. By Debra Watson, 6 April 2020. Auto companies continue to pressure workers to staff the auto giants’ vast warehouse distribution centers.

Quarantined Amazon worker in Texas denied sick pay, unable to get tested for coronavirus. By Tom Carter, 6 April 2020. Jo, a quarantined Amazon worker at DFW7, has not received any sick pay despite a glossy company leaflet promising that quarantined employees “will receive up to two weeks of additional paid time off, so they can get healthy without worrying about lost income.”

Detroit nurses forced to leave hospital after protesting understaffing. By Evan Blake, 6 April 2020. At around midnight Monday morning, seven night shift nurses at Sinai-Grace Hospital in Detroit were sent home after refusing to work in unsafe, understaffed conditions amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Nurses across the US demand equipment for protection against COVID-19: here.

Bronx hospital physician provides harrowing account of conditions on front lines of pandemic. By Benjamin Mateus, 6 April 2020. Miguel, a third-year resident in internal medicine at a community hospital in the Bronx, spoke to the WSWS on the experiences of health care workers and patients.

Fired aircraft carrier commander has COVID-19. By Patrick Martin, 6 April 2020. The diagnosis underscores the real dangers facing the crew of the USS Theodore Roosevelt, and all military personnel, to which Trump is entirely indifferent.