Alberta’s largest unions have released a joint statement calling for an immediate circuit-breaker lockdown in order to deal with the Omicron wave of the COVID pandemic. The province is presently setting records of between 4,700 and 6,800 new cases every day. On the second day back to school in Edmonton, schools were short 737 teachers while 4,700 students were away due to COVID and other illnesses. Testing capacity is overwhelmed, so that testing is restricted, which in turn weakens any system of tracing. The government has given up and does not know how many people are infected. They have left most people on their own to deal with COVID. Testing and tracing needs to be restored.
The unions’ stated that,
“With recently leaked reports, now confirmed by Alberta Health Services (AHS), showing that our health care system is about to be overwhelmed by the double-pronged reality of sky-rocketing hospital admissions and unprecedented staff shortages, we, the leaders of Alberta’s largest unions and labour organizations, demand that the Kenney government immediately implement temporary circuit-breaker measures to break the chains of transmission that are driving the Omicron Wave of the pandemic.
We make this call reluctantly and with great frustration, but believe we have been left with no alternatives because the pandemic in Alberta is out of control; workplaces and schools are unsafe; and our health care system and our health care workers are already being overwhelmed.
The circuit-breaker measures we’re proposing should include prohibiting large gatherings, including concerts and sporting events; closing restaurants and bars to in-person dining; shutting down movie theatres and casinos; moving churches and other houses of worship online; moving all university and colleges classes online; closing gyms and suspending recreational sports; and, as a very last resort, moving all students in K-12 schools to online learning. Only essential services should continue to operate while these emergency measures are in place and income supports should, once again, be provided to workers and businesses who are impacted.”
Socialist Alternative agrees with the call for circuit-breaker measures and the other demands outlined by the joint statement. Workers are tired of having their health and well being put on the line so that their bosses can keep making massive profits. Unbelievably, the government is now letting employers determine if an actively infected worker can be required to work. Albertans have been misled and consistently lied to by the ruling class, wave after wave, about what measures are necessary to successfully protect people and communities from sickness and death. Science has been sacrificed for profits, as public policy is skewed to favour large corporations. The province has cut the period for isolation to five days — no test needed. Many people will have to choose between going to work ill or staying home and not getting paid. Students have been sent back to school at one of the riskiest times.
The government had no plan for a clear, scientific, mass education campaign to outline what would keep us all healthy and help inoculate against unscientific misinformation. Alberta has seen countless zigzags, with claims a few months ago that the province’s strategy, almost entirely based on vaccinations, would put everything back to normal, and the promise in July 2021 of the “best summer ever.” People’s health has been secondary, while “the economy” has been of utmost importance to the ruling class. All the efforts of Jason Kenney and the UCP were placed on reopening the economy for the bosses, and all of their faith was placed on a vaccine strategy, not on a preventative plan for public health. As of January 12, 85.7 percent of Albertans over 12 have received two doses of the vaccine, and 32.4 percent have received three doses. But vaccines alone are not enough. They provide protection from severe symptoms and death, but vaccinated people can get and spread COVID and some people still experience breakthrough cases that will potentially cause lifelong issues. The vaccine is no alternative to preventative measures.
Beyond the immediate necessity of circuit-breaker measures, updated safety equipment is absolutely vital. The scientific consensus is that COVID is airborne, so appropriate action has to be taken without delay. N-95 masks and clean air are essential in workplaces, indoor public spaces, schools, and universities. Cloth masks and surgical masks are not sufficient. Air quality monitors, upgraded HVAC systems and portable HEPA filters are needed for clean air. Until this can be delivered, all university, college, and K-12 classes should be moved online. Employers and governments need to make these safety provisions available to everyone immediately.
Socialist Alternative calls on workers and students to organize quickly to defend themselves from the homicidal negligence of the ruling class. It is dangerous to sit around and wait for the government to mandate new masks or clean air for us. The bosses and officials won’t freely provide masks and clean air. By taking action together, workers and students can force the bosses to make the necessary changes. How can this be done? It is done through solidarity and collective direct action:
- For unionized workers, the union should demand free N-95 or KN-95 masks, clean air indoors, and 10 days of employer-paid sick leave for all workers. This should be backed up with a plan to escalate actions (slowdowns, sick-ins, walkouts, etc.), to force the employers to move. Look to coordinate action across workplaces.
- In non-unionized workplaces, with trusted coworkers, write a petition with the demand for free N-95 or KN-95 masks, clean air indoors, and 10 days of employer-paid sick leave for all workers. Use teamwork to get it signed by as many of your coworkers as possible. Inoculate your coworkers against retaliation by preparing them for worst-case scenarios, while also determining strategies to fight back against retaliatory tactics. March on the boss together and deliver your demands. Plan escalating action ahead of time (slowdowns, sick-ins, walkouts, etc.), and don’t back down.
- Students in schools and universities, establish a student committee to write a petition for free N-95 or KN-95 masks, clean air in indoor environments, and online learning until these demands can be delivered and there is a dramatic reduction in case numbers. Obtain as much support for the petition as possible. Hold socially distanced public meetings and build for a protest, or march on school officials and make your demands. Plan escalating action ahead of time, like a massive walkout or school strike.
- The Alberta Federation of Labour should publicly commit to defending any workers or students who are victimized for taking action to defend their health and safety.
The present health care crisis is not only due to the rapid spread of the Omicron variant, but it is also due to the increasingly privatized health care system, which has been under sharp attack by the UCP (and other conservative governments in the past), who have made a sport of targeting health care workers and professionals. Up to 81,600 Albertans were waiting for surgery in the first half of December, while 43,000 residents in Lethbridge do not have a primary care physician. Despite a 30 percent increase in emergencies since 2019, AHS temporarily shut down the ER in 4 rural hospitals in November, and availability of emergency services continues to be limited. Red alerts plague rural communities, occurring when there are not enough emergency personnel available for ambulances. Between October 23 to 26 there were at least 20 red alerts throughout numerous communities, and 21 communities faced further ambulance shortages during December 3 to 5. From January 1 to 13, there were 81 red alerts in 55 communities.
In recent municipal elections, voters roundly rejected right wing candidates. Unfortunately, the NDP, backed by many unions, plan to wait until the provincial election in 2023, giving the UCP plenty of time to do more damage or reverse their fortunes. Socialist Alternative points to the need for a massive campaign now to kick the UCP out.
Socialist Alternative calls for:
- Bringing back the “Test-Trace-Isolate” strategy, reversing the 5-day isolation policy to 10 days.
- Establishing on-site booster clinics in workplaces and schools.
- Making 10 days of employer-paid sick leave available to all workers.
- Updating public mask mandates, providing free N-95 or KN-95 masks in workplaces, schools, universities, and all other indoor public spaces.
- Ensuring that all emergency services are adequately staffed and capable of fulfilling the needs of their communities — even in a pandemic!
- No cuts to public services. Seize tax haven funds and drastically increase taxes on the rich and big corporations, not working people, to fully fund public services.
- Fully funded, comprehensive and public health system — with an emphasis on preventative care that recognises the social determinants of health. True public health care integrates social and long-term care, to include mental health, addiction treatment, dental, eye treatment and pharmacare, with no user fees.
- Publicly-owned pharmaceutical, laboratory and vaccine industry. Stop and reverse the creeping privatization of health care.
