Unions Help Frontline Workers Get COVID-19 Vaccine

Recently the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that half of Americans have received one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. As more Americans are getting vaccinated it has been harder for frontline workers to register for vaccination appointments, according to KING-TV. However, Washington-based unions, along with other unions across the country, have stepped up and are helping custodians, security officers, and airport workers get COVID-19 vaccines.

Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 6 hosted a clinic this month to help frontline workers get vaccinated. The union partnered with Discovery Health to offer more vaccine clinics during the weekends. Union leaders said it was important to help frontline workers get the COVID-19 vaccine so they can be protected.

“We’ve had dozens of members pass away from COVID-19, we did a survey and about 10% have contracted COVID-19. And the numbers go up when we talk about households,” Zenia Javaler, union president, told KING-TV.

Mike Guzman, a custodian, said he will do anything to protect himself from the situations he had to deal with in 2020. Guzman said he is glad to get halfway vaccinated, but wished he had the opportunity “a long time ago, in the beginning.”