A nonprofit group co-founded by Sean Penn is facing a National Labor Relations Board hearing for implicitly threatening employees after complaints about long hours and food served during a Covid-19 vaccination effort.
In January, the Community Organized Relief Effort group played a key role in a vaccine delivery operation in a parking lot at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.
The work garnered praise, but an anonymous online comment posted in response to a New York Times article at the end of the month on vaccinations said employees were working up to 18 hours a day. A second comment, also anonymous, said there had been a shortage of Krispy Kreme donuts and Subway sandwiches – foods described by the Times report as being on the site.
Soon, CORE employees received a long, passionate email from Penn. He wrote that he was grateful for their work and aware of his responsibilities in “the race against mutations and the fight against current strains of Covid-19”.
He also appeared to suggest that online commentators were guilty of “reckless narcissism” and “broad treason”.
And Penn proposed that those who might feel inclined to complain online in the midst of a pandemic should simply leave the group instead.
“All of us who might find ourselves predisposed to a culture of whining, have a much simpler path than widespread cyber whining,” he wrote. “It’s called quitting smoking.”
A labor lawyer in Los Angeles read the post after it was published in early February, along with an accompanying article, by the Los Angeles Times. That attorney, Daniel B. Rojas, said Penn’s remarks struck him as illegal and that he quickly filed a complaint with the NLRB.
In this case, the NLRB filed a complaint, dated October 25, claiming that Penn’s email violated federal labor law. Penn had, the complaint added, “implicitly threatened” employees with retaliation or dismissal.
A hearing before an administrative judge is scheduled for January.
An attorney for CORE and Penn said that “on principle and merit,” both rejected an NLRB settlement offer that involved no fines or monetary payments, and “would vigorously challenge and fight” the charge.
“Despite its complete lack of legal basis, the NLRB’s General Counsel and Regional Director have decided to waste federal resources and taxpayer dollars on a misguided and baseless lawsuit, even as CORE continues its work. revolutionary, ”said attorney, Mathew S. Rosengart, said. “The actions of the NLRB to distract CORE from its crucial mission in a case where no employees were injured are shameful. “
In May, Rosengart and two colleagues sent a letter to the NLRB saying the long hours complaint was bogus and that the accusations made by Rojas were “totally frivolous” and should be dismissed. Penn’s email, the lawyers added, was “a motivational rallying cry.”
NLRB General Counsel Jennifer Abruzzo said in a statement on Thursday: “Although CORE does important and admirable work, like all employers, it must respect the rights of its employees under the National Law on labor relations to engage in protected concerted activities, such as discussing matters of mutual interest with one another and raising workplace concerns to the public, federal agencies or other third parties.
This week Rojas explained his motive for filing a complaint, writing in an email: “It is neither selfish nor anti-American to discuss your pay or working conditions with the public.”
What to know about Covid-19 booster injections
The FDA has cleared booster shots for millions of recipients of Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson vaccines. Pfizer and Moderna beneficiaries who are eligible for a recall include people 65 years of age and older and young adults at high risk of severe Covid-19 due to medical conditions or their workplace. Eligible Pfizer and Moderna beneficiaries may receive a booster at least six months after their second dose. All Johnson & Johnson recipients will be eligible for a second injection at least two months after the first.
Yes. The FDA has updated its clearances to allow medical providers to boost people with a different vaccine than the one they originally received, a strategy known as “mix and match.” Whether you have received Moderna, Johnson & Johnson, or Pfizer-BioNTech, you may receive a booster of any other vaccine. Regulators have not recommended any vaccine over another as a booster. They have also remained silent on whether it is best to stick to the same vaccine when possible.
The CDC said the conditions that qualify a person for a booster shot include: hypertension and heart disease; diabetes or obesity; cancer or blood disorders; weakened immune system; chronic lung, kidney or liver disease; dementia and some disabilities. Pregnant women and current and former smokers are also eligible.
The FDA has cleared the boosters for workers whose work puts them at high risk of exposure to potentially infectious people. The CDC says this group includes: emergency medical workers; education workers; food and agricultural workers; manufacturing workers; correctional workers; workers in the US postal service; public transport workers; employees of grocery stores.
Yes. The CDC says the Covid vaccine can be given regardless of the timing of other vaccines, and many pharmacy websites allow people to schedule a flu shot along with a booster dose.
In many ways, CORE’s work on the pandemic has been successful. The group, which Penn co-founded after the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, has provided free coronavirus tests in California and beyond. At Dodger Stadium, CORE assisted the Los Angeles Fire Department, who led an operation that administered nearly 56,000 vaccinations in its first nine days.
The description of the parking lot scene in the Times article at the end of January included: “There’s Krispy Kreme for breakfast and Subway for lunch (the fruit on the tables is used to prick with syringes during the sessions). coaching). At trailers marked “Vaccine Draw,” runners walk past Mr. Penn, slip their empty coolers inside, and wait for a new batch of syringes.
Among the 150 comments in response to the story, there were two that claimed to be from CORE workers. One, attributed to “CORE staff”, referred to the Federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration, writing: “We have staff who work 18 hours a day, 6 days a week”, adding, “This is a violation of OSHA. “
A second reviewer, “staff # 2” wrote, “We do NOT get krispy kreme for breakfast.” In fact, we usually do NOT have breakfast, just coffee, ”wrote this commenter. “And lunch is NOT on the metro. It’s the same old lettuce wraps every day. It’s a free lunch for staff / volunteers so I’m not complaining but still… not the metro.
The day after the article appeared, Penn’s message to “all staff at CORE” came out, citing “a pair of highly visible comments on a major media platform. He began by congratulating the workers at CORE and wrote that he was consumed with the fight against Covid: “I wake up before dawn and pass out after midnight every morning and every night, pulling my hair and pounding the sidewalk. “
Penn wrote that CORE has strong complaints procedures and complies with OSHA regulations, but also cautioned against “obscene criticism” and said “an organized and valuable response is most vulnerable to destruction inside”.
And although he wrote that he had “taken advice” and would refrain from using certain terms, Penn left little doubt about his feelings towards commentators.
“And to whoever wrote them,” he wrote, “understand that in every cell of my body is vitriolic for the way your actions are reflected so harmfully on your brothers and sisters in arms. “
