SALT LAKE CITY — Senate Minority Leader Karen Mayne is asking Utah's governor to create a "rapid response team" for job sites dealing with COVID-19.
In a letter sent to Governor Gary Herbert and shared with FOX 13, Sen. Mayne asked for a mobile unit to be used at businesses if a work site has someone with symptoms consistent with the virus.
"If an employee on a worksite develops symptoms of a possible COVID-19 infection other employees may become hesitant to continuing working. One call will activate the unit. They will test and evaluate employees and determine which workers can continue to work and who, if any, needs to go home," she wrote. "This procedure allows the work to continue by providing additional protection to workers while allowing those who need to be isolated to do so. I have personally been involved with two sites where companies were faced with the decision to either shut down or send everyone to be tested. This is unacceptable if we are to get our state back to work."
Sen. Mayne, who is also vice-president of the AFL-CIO, included a list of business organizations that backed her idea including the union, the Salt Lake Chamber, Rio Tinto, the Utah Manufacturers Association, the Utah Retail Merchants Association and the Utah League of Cities & Towns.
"There is support for this within both chambers of the Legislature and amongst members of your administration. Our businesses and their workers are the backbone for this economy to rebound. Please, join me in making this project happen!" she wrote.
In an interview with FOX 13, Sen. Mayne said the governor has been receptive.
See the letter here:
