The White House is formally declaring teachers essential workers as part of their efforts to encourage schools around the country to reopen for in-person learning.
The move is just the latest in the administration's aggressive campaign to pressure districts into bringing back students this fall -- and although the essential worker designation provides guidance for educators that is only voluntary, it calls on teachers to return to the classroom even after potential exposure.
The guidance for essential workers states that they can continue to work even after exposure to a confirmed case of Covid-19, provided they remain asymptomatic. Schools' contribution to community spread has already been a top concern for districts making the decision to open or close, so pushing teachers to continue working after potential exposure could prove controversial.
"There's no mandate in that, Maria. What that is, is when you're declared an essential it means you're going to be prioritized for things like PPE and support. But we want to get our kids back to school but we also want our teachers to know that we're going to make the resources available so that their schools can be a safe environment," he said during an appearance on Fox Business.
Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, said the critical worker designation could be used to "threaten, bully and coerce" teachers into classrooms without the proper considerations.
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