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Essential workers

Police & Fire
COVID-19: Omicron Surge Affecting Staffing Levels For Essential Workers COVID-19: Omicron Surge Affecting Staffing Levels For Essential Workers
Covid-19: Omicron Surge Affecting Staffing Levels For Essential Workers The spread of the more-transmissible Omicron COVID-19 variant is leading to staffing shortages for some essential employers who have been hit hardest by the winter surge of the virus. Essential employees have been forced to call out of work en masse in recent weeks due to positive Omicron infections that have led to staffing shortages for first responders, healthcare workers, supermarket workers, flight crews, and other key professions. The shortages have led to hundreds of canceled flights, closed restaurants, and short-staffed retail stores, leaving workers frustrated and fatigued af…

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by Zak Failla
News
COVID-19: Walmart In Fairfield County Offers Vaccine COVID-19: Walmart In Fairfield County Offers Vaccine
Covid-19: Walmart In Fairfield County Offers Vaccine A Fairfield County Walmart location will soon begin providing COVID-19 vaccinations to those eligible to receive the first dosage of the much sought after vaccine. Walmart on Connecticut Avenue in Norwalk is one of seven Walmarts in the state that will be offering the vaccine to those eligible under Connecticut’s “Phase 1B,” which includes anyone over the age of 65. Those eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine now includes healthcare workers, residents and employees in long-term care facilities, first responders, essential workers, and Connecticut residents over the age of 65 as of Thursday, Feb…

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by Zak Failla
News
COVID-19: CT Makes New Change To Travel Advisory COVID-19: CT Makes New Change To Travel Advisory
Covid-19: CT Makes New Change To Travel Advisory Amid the holiday season, Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont has laid out new guidelines for travelers planning to head into the Nutmeg State. Lamont announced over the weekend that the state's COVID-19 travel advisory has been revised to apply to all travelers domestic and foreign who are entering Connecticut from any area outside of neighboring New York, New Jersey, and Rhode Island. The new advisory became effective at 12:01 a.m. on Saturday, Dec. 19. According to Lamont’s office, there will be three exemptions from the requirements to self-quarantine: Testing alternative exemption: Applicab…

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by Zak Failla
Business
Stop & Shop To Fill More Than 5,000 Positions In NY, CT, MA Stop & Shop To Fill More Than 5,000 Positions In NY, CT, MA
Stop & Shop To Fill More Than 5,000 Positions In NY, CT, MA Stop & Shop is looking to hire over 5,000 new employees in for in-store, home delivery and distribution centers throughout the Northeast.  Also available in New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey and Rhode Island are roles in the supermarket chain's bakery, deli, seafood, home delivery driver, selecting, and shopping departments. Potential applicants can start the hiring process here.  “As we continue to expand our e-commerce capacity, and work to deliver a great in-store experience, we’re looking for more team members who want to join our business,” said Maria …

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by Christina Coulter
News
COVID-19: NY Unveils New Entry Policy For Quarantines By Out-Of-State Travelers COVID-19: NY Unveils New Entry Policy For Quarantines By Out-Of-State Travelers
Covid-19: NY Unveils New Entry Policy For Quarantines By Out-Of-State Travelers All travelers from non-neighboring states planning to stay in New York for more than 24 hours will now be required to quarantine for at least three days and then test negative for COVID-19 and present proof of a negative test before leaving quarantine under a sweeping new policy. Gov. Andrew Cuomo unveiled the new policy on Saturday, Oct. 31. It replaces the former 14-day quarantine list for travelers from states or territories with a positive test rate higher than 10 per 100,000 residents over a seven-day rolling average or an area with a 10 percent or higher positivity rate over a sev…

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by Joe Lombardi
News
COVID-19: First Fines For Violating CT Travel Advisory Issued COVID-19: First Fines For Violating CT Travel Advisory Issued
Covid-19: First Fines For Violating CT Travel Advisory Issued The first fines for travelers coming into Connecticut and violating the state’s mandatory 14-day quarantine for mandate due to COVID-19 have been issued by state officials. Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont said that one person returning to Connecticut from Louisiana, and another from Florida - both states with high COVID-19 infection rates - were fined for failing to fill out travel forms. Each of the fines was $1,000. One person also refused to quarantine and was levied another $1,000 fine. Related story - COVID-19: Travelers From More States, Virgin Islands Added To NY/NJ/CT Quarantin…

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by Zak Failla
Schools
Here's Where To Sign Up For Piano Lessons If You Are An Essential Worker In Fairfield County Here's Where To Sign Up For Piano Lessons If You Are An Essential Worker In Fairfield County
Here's Where To Sign Up For Piano Lessons If You Are An Essential Worker In Fairfield County For those essential workers needing a creative outlet in Fairfield County, free piano lessons are about to begin. Did you know playing the piano takes away the pressures of daily life and can improve your mental health? So says research published by the National Institute of Health.  A remote piano program for essential workers will begin this weekend, offered by a Greenwich-based nonprofit organization run by Fairfield County piano teacher Felicia Feng Zhang.  Zhang is well known in the region as a piano educator and music advisor. She teaches piano through her school …

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by Donna Christopher
Business
COVID-19: Stop & Shop Extends Pay Raise For 56,000 Workers COVID-19: Stop & Shop Extends Pay Raise For 56,000 Workers
Covid-19: Stop & Shop Extends Pay Raise For 56,000 Workers Stop & Shop and the United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW) have announced the extension of a 10-percent pay increase for hourly store workers through Saturday, July 4 amid the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.  The measure covers approximately 56,000 associates in over 400 stores throughout Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, New York and New Jersey. “With incredible dedication, teamwork and care for our customers, Stop & Shop associates are continuing to make extraordinary contributions throughout this situation,” said Gordon Reid, Stop & Shop Pres…

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by Joe Lombardi
Lifestyle
COVID-19: Family's 'Bake Back' Effort Becomes Nationwide Movement COVID-19: Family's 'Bake Back' Effort Becomes Nationwide Movement
Covid-19: Family's 'Bake Back' Effort Becomes Nationwide Movement A family is "Baking America Great Again," with its “Bake Back America” campaign designed to spread random acts of kindness for essential workers and first responders during the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The Westchester County residents' initiative has not only caught on in the region, but it's become a national movement. Last month, 16-year-old Scarsdale resident Brianna Subin, and her teenage brother Benjamin, delivered homemade baked goods to area first responders to thank them for their work during the pandemic. Not satisfied, the Subin family took “Bake Back America” …

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by Zak Failla
News
COVID-19: Trains, NYC Subways To Be Shut Down Nightly For Disinfections COVID-19: Trains, NYC Subways To Be Shut Down Nightly For Disinfections
Covid-19: Trains, NYC Subways To Be Shut Down Nightly For Disinfections The Metropolitan Transit Authority is taking drastic measures to help clean up the public transit system for essential workers during the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. During his daily COVID-19 briefing, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and MTA officials announced that Metro-North, LIRR, and New York City subway trains and stations would be disinfected every 24 hours to curb the spread of the virus. To achieve that, Cuomo said that the subways would be shut down every morning from 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. when ridership is at its lowest, noting that ridership is down 92 percent across the board …

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by Zak Failla
Business
COVID-19: BJ's Offers Special Shopping Hours For First Responders, Medical Workers COVID-19: BJ's Offers Special Shopping Hours For First Responders, Medical Workers
Covid-19: BJ's Offers Special Shopping Hours For First Responders, Medical Workers BJ’s Wholesale Club is paying it forward to the essential workers on the frontlines battling the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. The wholesale giant is showing its appreciation for first responders and healthcare workers by providing a free four-month Inner Circle membership to the warehouse club, including a special “appreciation hour” on Sundays. From 8 a.m. to 9 a.m. on Sundays, BJ’s will have an “appreciation hour” when those workers can shop at BJ’s outlets without any membership, as of Sunday, April 19. First responders and healthcare workers can sign up for their complimenta…

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by Zak Failla
News
COVID-19: Executive Order Reserves CT Hotels, Short-Term Rentals For Essential Workers COVID-19: Executive Order Reserves CT Hotels, Short-Term Rentals For Essential Workers
Covid-19: Executive Order Reserves CT Hotels, Short-Term Rentals For Essential Workers Short-term rentals, motels, and hotels in Connecticut will be repurposed and utilized by essential workers and the vulnerable as the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) continues to spread through the state. Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont signed an executive order that will “ensure that hotels and other types of short-term rentals are being used by those who need it most at this challenging time.” Among those the beds are reserved for includes healthcare workers, first responders, essential employees and the most vulnerable populations, including the homeless.  Residents who need a place to qu…

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by Zak Failla
Business
COVID-19: Grocery Workers On Front Lines In Battle: How You Can Shop Safely COVID-19: Grocery Workers On Front Lines In Battle: How You Can Shop Safely
Covid-19: Grocery Workers On Front Lines In Battle: How You Can Shop Safely While millions have self-isolated and have been telecommuting or not going into work at all amid fears of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, there’s a select group that doesn't have that option: grocery store employees. The world has slowed to a halt for much of the country, but things have only sped up at grocery stores, where shoppers have been flooding aisles and clearing out shelves as the virus continues to spread. While most across the country have taken to social distancing and staying six feet away from others, store clerks have no choice but to deal with a never-ending line…

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by Zak Failla