Some postal employees have been quarantined for 14 days that came in contact with an infected person. Other employees have refused to work at the window or in delivery jobs that would expose them to dozens of potentially-infected people every day. Instead, they are staying home and taking leave without pay. Supervisors and managers, meanwhile, are sheltering in their offices. There is inadequate PPE and hand sanitizer in almost every postal installation.

Some postal employees over 60 and with medical conditions are extremely concerned about being exposed to dozens of customers each day. Some postal customers cough right on the Clerk.

The closure of schools has meant childcare problems for many. Getting a doctor’s note or FMLA form is not easy anymore due to medical personnel being too busy. Kaiser Permanente has closed their smaller clinics.

USPS Management has not articulated what their policy is on administrative leave. They are trying to make employees use their sick and annual leave, although some feel well enough to work and want to work. It is hard for people to change their behavior after decades of postal attendance terrorism.