Professor James Brudney was quoted in a USA Today article examing the wages made by essential workers during the pandemic.
Nationwide, essential employees earn an average of 18.2% less than employees in other industries, according to a report from consultancy business.org.
Retail salespeople, mail carriers, light-truck drivers, cashiers, janitors, and cleaners are among the employees considered essential.
Although companies such as Amazon and Kroger paid workers an extra $2 an hour to work during the pandemic, that’s still not enough for workers like Levine, and the extra pay, so far, is temporary. Amazon will stop paying workers the extra wage starting in June. Meanwhile, Kroger said it will continue to give “thank you” pay to frontline workers through mid-June.
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“Grocery store workers, retail workers, cashiers, delivery and warehouse workers are really underpaid considering how essential they are to the economy,” said James Brudney, an employment law professor at Fordham University School of Law.
A large portion of the workforce negatively affected by the pandemic is made up of immigrants, who are also not receiving health benefits, Brudney said. Many are depending on food banks.