COVID-19 Update—Custodians Working Too Little or Too Much

Apple custodians continue to receive paychecks

As the coronavirus pandemic continues, custodians find themselves sitting at home or working extra shifts, depending on their employers. Some of the nonworking custodians are left without pay, while others are fortunate to still be receiving paychecks.

Hundreds of custodians working for Apple Inc. at its Cupertino, California campus were uncertain which group they belonged in after they were told their jobs would be suspended without pay as Apple shut down work in its offices, The Wall Street Journal reports. Many of the workers had begun preparing to file for unemployment. However, last week company officials announced Apple plans to pay the hourly workers after all.

The tech giant, which has more than US$200 billion in cash and cash equivalents, has hundreds of contractors who work as custodians, bus drivers, and perform other functions on its campus. Contractors representing about three-fourths of the unionized janitors began telling workers they would lose wages and health-care benefits. This sparked confusion as an Apple executive had earlier assured employees that the company would continue to pay hourly workers even after closing its retail stores around the world. The official didn’t specify whether Apple would pay hourly contract workers.

However, last week Apple officials confirmed it is working with its service providers to ensure hourly workers, such as custodians, will continue to be paid. The unionized janitors make nearly $18 an hour plus about $10 in benefits.

Several Silicon Valley companies such as Facebook Inc. and Google parent company Alphabet Inc. have continued to pay hourly workers, including contractors such as custodians.

School custodians facing overtime if schools become temporary daycares

As daycares have all closed in response to the coronavirus pandemic, public schools have been identified as possible settings for temporary childcare centers to serve parents who are emergency health care workers. However, some school officials are asking politicians to reconsider using elementary and high school buildings as daycares as cleaning costs could pile up for school districts, Education Week reports.

As gatherings are restricted to no more than 10 people, these makeshift childcare centers would take up several rooms in a building. School districts would have to pay custodians to clean and disinfect these rooms daily. Custodians, who are considered essential workers in a pandemic, would need to be paid overtime to keep up with the work. These extra cleaning costs were not factored into school districts’ budgets and could climb into the hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Using school facilities during a pandemic is risky as the coronavirus can spread through schools’ HVAC systems, requiring custodians to clean every room in the building, even rooms that are not being used.

NYPD custodian dies of COVID-19

A 62-year-old custodian who worked for the New York City Police Department (NYPD) was the first person from the NYPD to die of coronavirus, Buzz Feed News reports.

A native of Guyana, Dennis Dickson, was dedicated to his job. After Hurricane Sandy hit New York City, Dickson worked 17 days straight keeping the NYPD’s lower Manhattan headquarters safe and clean for his colleagues.

The NYPD facilities team reports that department custodians have been busy disinfecting hard surfaces that officers and staffers might touch throughout their day in police buildings, including doorknobs, elevator buttons, and staircase railings.

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