Dear Brother/Sister Member,
COVID-19 Response Unit Established
In early March we began establishing procedures to ensure the health and safety of our members and their families. We have communicated those directives to you through personal emails as well as postings to our IUOE825.ORG website and Facebook and Instagram pages.
In view of a daily changes to information, to eliminate misunderstandings and respond to questions from members and signatory contractors, I want to inform you of the efforts we are making to provide you with the latest information and to answer your questions.
To do this effectively, we have established a COVID 19 Response Unit; a COVID-19 HOTLINE; and are looking at holding Virtual Town Meetings in the near future.
The COVID-19 Response Unit’s mission is to inform our members and signatory contractors of:
- workplace issues related to COVID-19;
- questions relating to the administration of our funds;
- concerns over how state (New Jersey and New York) and federal agencies are requiring employers and employees to conduct themselves;
- and to provide general up-to-date information on the virus as it relates to our industry.
The COVID-19 HOTLINE is (973) 671-6991.
The COVID-19 Response Unit will consist of three teams charged with receiving questions via the hotline, routing them to the appropriate authority and responding with accurate information in the virtual town meetings, as well as through our ongoing communications via emails and social media.
TEAM 1 – Information
Members: William Vaccaro, Victor Grigoriew
Team 1 is exploring the concept of virtual town hall meetings to provide the most up-to-date information that has been received from leadership and the two other teams, including information on topics such as the proper Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) on job sites, the best workplace practices to prevent infection and other relevant topics. Time will be allotted for questions from attendees.
TEAM 2 – Administration
Team Members: Kevin Young, Drew DiPalma
Team 2 will:
- receive calls from the dedicated hotline. They will maintain a list of all callers who want to participate in Team 1’s virtual town hall meetings. They will document questions for publication in the form of Frequently Asked Questions to be communicated to members via Local 825 communication channels.
- coordinate with New Jersey and New York Departments of Labor and with Federal agencies for information on unemployment insurance. This information will also be provided to Team 1 for its virtual town meetings.
- identify signatory contractors who specialize in workplace decontamination and disinfection and provide these resources to signatory contractors.
TEAM 3 – Job Assistance
Team Members, Outside Construction: Tim Muller, Chris Lalevee and Joe Grace.
Inside shops: Alex Kolbasowski, Evan Daniels and Pat Hjelm
Team 3 will relay questions from Team 2’s hotline to research and respond in a timely manner. They will cover issues concerning job-site etiquette and navigating problems related to COVID-19. Team 3 will share these responses with Team 1 for use in virtual town meetings.
VIRTUAL TOWN MEETING REQUIREMENTS
Virtual town meetings will likely be held using the GOTOMEETING.COM web platform. To participate, one must download the GOTOMEETING app to his or her phone or computer in advance. Callers who request to participate will be emailed a link in advance of the meeting with information as to the time of the meeting.
COVID-19 HOTLINE
The Local 825 COVID-19 HOTLINE is (973) 671-6991.
Callers should leave their name, telephone number and a brief reason for their call. All calls will be documented and directed to the appropriate team for response. Every effort will be made to provide responses within a reasonable timeframe.
We are continually in touch with state and federal authorities and monitoring information as it becomes available. We are committed to providing you with accurate and timely updates, as evidenced through the steps we have outlined.
In the meantime, maintain your safety and good health.