United Health Centers employees in Fresno enjoy a recent pizza lunch. UHC officials cite starting pay of $16 an hour as a valuable retention tool amid the coronavirus. Photo by Frank Lopez

As restrictions on businesses continue to loosen and the economy reopens, business owners have a lot of work to do to be able to reopen safely as well legally.

Along with new rules and guidance for businesses to maintain health and social distancing, employers must also find a path to profitability once again.

The impact of shutdown orders on the economy was swift and drastic. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the national unemployment rate rose to 14.7% in April, up from 3.6% in January.

In Fresno County, April’s unemployment rate rose to 16.7%, up from a revised 11% in March, and from 7.6% in April of last year. The county saw 76,500 people unemployed, compared to 49,600 in March, and 34,100 in April 2019.

Unemployment benefits, along with apprehension to go back work due to fear of contracting Covid-19, is making some employees not want to take up job offers to return, posing challenges for employers.

 

Restaurant view

“We’ve had significant trouble with employees coming back,” said Dave Fansler, owner of Fansler Restaurant Group. “They’re being paid so much in unemployment, it doesn’t make very much sense. They [government] want us to bring them back, but then they’re paying them an extra 30 grand to stay home. It seems like a conflict of interest to me.”

The Fansler Restaurant Group consists of Westwoods BBQ & Spice Co., Pismo’s Coastal Grill and Yosemite Ranch in Fresno.

Extra unemployment benefits from the federal government will end in July, and Fansler said the company would give employees one chance to return to work. If they refuse, they will be laid off permanently.

Since April, Fansler has been vocal about allowing restaurants to re-open under Center for Disease Control (CDC) guidelines. Fansler spent about $5,000 dollars on Plexiglass partitions between booths to able to maximize seating capacity, but also create a vibe where patrons are comfortable.

Fansler advises that if an employee declines to return to work, employers should focus on bringing in new people.

 “We want you to come back, but if you’re not, we are not going to force you,” Fansler said. “We got to start looking for other employees — we’re not going to compete with the government for our labor.”

 

Ripple effect

The Fresno Business Council (FBC), is a non-partisan organization of consisting of local business leaders that focuses on social and economic issues. Deborah Nankivell, CEO of the FBC said that some industries will bounce back faster than others, noting that some are based on people gathering, and with such a fluid situation, it is hard to predict what could happen next in the business community.

“People want to keep their employees — hiring is expensive,” Nankivell said. “It’s a difficult management challenge. The big awakening for a lot of people is that you touch any part of our economy, it ripples through everyone else.”

Nankivell said that these management decisions are not always an economic one, as many employers work with their employees every day and build deep relationships, which makes it a tough decision for employers to let have to let a worker go.

Most people want to come back to work, Nankivell said, and that she hasn’t heard many stories from members about employees not wanting to come back.  

 

 

Health care view

The current pandemic has highlighted the capabilities, as well as some of the pitfalls, of the U.S. health care industry, with medial workers on the frontlines of the new virus.

United Health Centers, a medical provider that focuses on underserved communities throughout the Central Valley, is preparing to ramp up its Covid-19 testing, but there is apprehension as to whether there will be enough employees to handle increased testing needs in the future.

“We have had some staff that don’t want to come back to work, and they’re scared,” said Justin Preas, deputy CEO at UHC. “We’ve been fortunate to have enough staff to maintain the level of testing that we’ve had. As things reopen, one of the things we’re concerned about is the workforce, having enough staff to be able to keep things going.”

This is a concern all hospitals and medical facilities have at the moment, Preas said.  

Preas said that many employees don’t want to risk infecting their family members at home, some who may be immune-compromised or elderly.

Though UHC has purchased a lot of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for employees, Preas said he doesn’t think that they, or any other medical facilities, have enough equipment for the long term.

Preas said that with all entry-level employees making at least $16 an hour, UHC has competitive wages that makes staying at work an attractive option for employees.

 

Legal issues

Ian Wieland, a shareholder and attorney at Sagaser, Watkins & Wieland PC in Fresno, said that businesses wont be opening back up in a normal environment, but in one where social distancing rules are in place according to state guidelines, including from the Division of Occupational Safety and Health of California (Cal/OSHA).

“The consequences if you don’t follow Cal/OSHA is potentially being cited by Cal/OSHA as well as workers’ comp claims,” Wieland said. “I’ve been telling clients that they don’t wasn’t to be negligent there because they can be subject to a serious and willful claim if they’re not adhering to what they’re supposed to.”

Wieland said that for practicality, many clients and employers are weighing whether it makes sense to have everyone back in the workplace or not moving forward, with more businesses looking to keep some employees working from home and maximizing office space.

Unless an employee falls in a high-risk category, such as being older or having a medical condition that makes them more susceptible to Covid-19, if work is offered to them they have to return to work or they can be fired, Wieland said.

Wieland said that the firm is stressing to clients to make sure to accurately track employee wages and hours, and that all reimbursement payments for employees working from home are made.

“Not only do you want to follow the law, but you want to make sure you’re addressing public perception, and the reality is if people don’t feel safe, they’re not going to come back to our businesses. We are allowed to re-open but we still got to be safe so that people come and do business with us,” Wieland said.