USW joins labor coalition urging CDC to acknowledge COVID aerosol transmission

The United Steelworkers (USW) joined a coalition of 45 allied unions and labor organizations in calling upon the Centers for Disease and Infection Control (CDC) to update its Covid-19 guidance to fully reflect the latest scientific evidence regarding SARS-CoV-2 transmission through aerosols.

The coalition delivered a petition with over 10,000 signatures to the CDC today, Tuesday, Feb. 23.

“We have hundreds of thousands of members considered essential workers and risking their lives every day to support us all,” wrote USW President Thomas M. Conway. “They and their employers depend on accurate science from CDC. And the science clearly shows the danger of aerosol transmission.”

Recognizing aerosol transmission would require the CDC to update its definition of “exposure,” which would improve the efficacy of contact tracing and case isolation. Acknowledging the scientific evidence and making these improvements, the coalition said, are essential and necessary steps to bringing the pandemic under control.