MTA Weighs Payout for Virus Deaths, Nodding to Peril for Workers
- Families of 79 MTA transit workers could collect $500,000 each
- Illinois, Alaska, other states amend worker compensation pay
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All across the country, states and cities are starting to wrestle with how to compensate front-line workers made ill by the coronavirus pandemic.
New York, the epicenter of the crisis, is no exception. This week, the Metropolitan Transportation Authority will vote on a deal negotiated between its CEO and labor unions to pay $500,000 to families of workers who died from Covid-19, perhaps the most generous benefit to date. Thus far, the outbreak has struck down at least 79 employees of the MTA, which operates subways, buses and trains running mostly in and around New York City.