Return To Work Treats City Workers As 'Guinea Pigs,' Mayor Told

NEW YORK, NY — Two weeks before thousands of city workers prepare to head into the office for the first time since the coronavirus pandemic, some are still anxiously waiting for safety protocols about their return, according to one city worker who called into WNYC.

A city worker named Alfred told Mayor Bill de Blasio during the Brian Lehrer Show on Friday that he and his colleagues still feel unsafe about a May 3 return date set by the city for 80,000 municipal workers who have been working from home.

As the date approaches, Alfred, who did not specify where he worked, said his agency has given barely any guidance as to what the return will look like.

"I think people are really kind of scratching their heads as to why there's such a rush?" Alfred said. "I understand we want the city to get back to normal. I want that. I want New York City thriving again. But, you know, we kind of feel like guinea pigs a little bit in this move to get the city back to work."

The mayor first announced the May 3 return date at the end of March, framing it as a major step in the city's recovery from the pandemic.

The return to in-person work includes about 20 percent of the city's total workforce. The other 80 percent are essential workers who have been on the frontlines throughout the pandemic, according to de Blasio.

The mayor defended the decision Friday, saying working in person will help with productivity. He pointed to other workforces, like schools, that have been brought back in person.

"We think so much better when people are in-person, at least part of the time," he said. "...It's going to help us get more done for the people of this city."

But Alfred contended that the return comes as New York City's coronavirus levels are higher than thresholds set last summer in preparation for reopening. The coronavirus positivity rate was 5.35 percent on Friday, above the 5-percent threshold.

Workers with long commutes are especially nervous, including an Asian-American colleague worried about the increase in anti-Asian hate crimes, Alfred said.

De Blasio argued the coronavirus rate is "right on the verge" of the safety threshold. Other metrics, like the number of daily hospitalizations, are below the thresholds, he said. There were 168 coronavirus hospitalizations on Friday, less than the 200 threshold.

"The data and the science is telling us, this is exactly the right time to bring people back," the mayor said. "And our health care leaders have been deeply involved in the effort to decide when our City employees in the officers should come back and how to do it. So, I'm confident we can do this very, very safely."