“While it is the employers responsibility to provide personal protective equipment to their employees, the Machinists Union could not just watch the carriers’ struggle to meet their obligation under these unprecedented circumstances,” said General Vice President Sito Pantoja. “Our members, who are heroically putting their own health on the line to perform their essential role in the nation’s economy were desperate for more protection. I applaud our District Lodge presidents for obtaining these masks for our members in need.”
Although the masks are not medical grade, they will help stop the spread of the virus and make it safer for people to work. Based on the
recommendations made by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), these masks should also be worn in public settings where other social distancing measures are difficult to maintain like grocery stores and pharmacies, and especially in areas of significant community-based transmission.
The masks are being shipped this week from the District Lodge offices directly to Transportation Local Lodges across the country. Members in need of masks should contact their District or Local IAM representative.
