The state has identified 653,288 cases of COVID-19 as of today (increase of 21,430 since our last newsletter two weeks ago), with 632,808 of these patients no longer required to be isolated (increase of 18,506). 7,839 deaths have been reported (increase of 89). For more information on the current situation, visit the Minnesota Department of Health website.
At the bottom of this email, you will find Met Council workforce statistics related to COVID-19 leave that have been reported to the Employee Resource Center.
Do you have thoughts or concerns on the content or frequency of these COVID-19 update emails? We would love to hear your feedback through the online COVID-19 form, so we can make sure these emails are providing the most useful and timely information to staff.
|
At a glance
What you need to know this week:
- The Met Council's COVID-19 Leave Policy will no longer be available after Sept. 17.
- Starting Oct. 11, employees who are reporting to work onsite must be fully vaccinated or get weekly COVID-19 testing, and test negative.
-
The Pfizer vaccine, which is available at the Met Council's Well@Work clinics, recently became the first COVID-19 vaccine to receive full approval from the FDA for individuals 16 years of age and older. The Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines continue to be available to the public under emergency use authorizations.
- The Met Council's Face Coverings Procedure is in effect. All employees who are inside Met Council facilities must wear a face covering, regardless of vaccination status.
- Teleworking staff should check the Telework Transition FAQ page on MetNet for information on technology, workspaces, planning, and more.
Read on for more about these updates.
COVID-19 Leave Policy expiring Sept. 17
As announced last week, the Met Council’s COVID-19 Leave Policy (PDF) will no longer be available after Sept. 17. Moving forward, employees need to use personal leave or work with their supervisors to manage work absences through flexibility in scheduling.
The federal law providing us the authority and funding to establish COVID-19 leave was not renewed and expired at the end of 2020. We continued offering the leave to employees this year, however, as the support was still needed and we did not know how long the pandemic conditions would last or whether the federal government would renew the leave. However, as an unexpected crisis and without assistance through federal reimbursement, the strain on our budget has been significant. And now, with vaccines more widely available for teens and adults and one receiving full FDA approval, the need for this leave has diminished and we are sunsetting the policy.
Both types of leave in this policy will end: Emergency Sick Pay, including the leave offered for symptoms after receiving the vaccine, and Expanded School Leave. Along with the ending of this policy, any unused Emergency Sick Pay hours shown in PeopleSoft will expire.
We know that this might present challenges as you manage your schedule with your supervisor and navigate the emergence of COVID-19 variants and community concerns. We continue to focus on creating safe work environments for employees, while doing our part to reduce community spread of the COVID-19 virus. We encourage you to work with your supervisors to address your concerns. You may also use the online COVID-19 form to share your questions and concerns.
Reminder: Employees must be fully vaccinated by Oct. 11 or get weekly testing
Starting Oct. 11, in order to report to onsite work, Met Council employees must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 or they will need to get weekly COVID-19 tests and test negative. The Met Council and its operating divisions will be following state guidance that requires anyone who is currently working onsite – including any teleworkers who plan to transition back to the office in the coming weeks – must be fully vaccinated or test negative.
The Met Council pandemic planning teams are working to determine the process for employees to submit proof of vaccination and to facilitate the testing process and expectations. We will also determine any appropriate processes for religious or personal medical exemptions related to the COVID-19 vaccination. We will communicate details about this process in the next couple weeks.
Schedule appointments soon
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have determined that individuals are fully vaccinated if one of the following conditions is met:
- Two weeks after their second dose in a two-dose COVID-19 vaccination series approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) or the World Health Organization (WHO)
- Two weeks after a single-dose COVID-19 vaccine approved by the FDA or the WHO
Employees who are not vaccinated against COVID-19 have the next five weeks to obtain the vaccine. With vaccinations that require two shots, the waiting period between shots is 21 days for the Pfizer vaccine and 28 days for the Moderna vaccine. If you begin the process by Sept. 3, you could be fully vaccinated by Oct. 8 with the Pfizer vaccine and by Oct. 15 with Moderna.
Review the tools below in this email to find vaccination opportunities near you.
FDA approves Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine for ages 16+
Last week, the Pfizer vaccine became the first COVID-19 vaccine to receive full approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The two-dose vaccine is now fully approved for individuals 16 years of age and older, and it continues to be available under emergency use authorization for children aged 12 to 15. The Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines continue to be available to the public under emergency use authorizations.
The Pfizer vaccine is available at the Met Council's Well@Work clinics.
According to the FDA, "While this and other vaccines have met the FDA’s rigorous, scientific standards for emergency use authorization, as the first FDA-approved COVID-19 vaccine, the public can be very confident that [the Pfizer] vaccine meets the high standards for safety, effectiveness, and manufacturing quality the FDA requires of an approved product."
Reminder: Masks required inside Met Council facilities
In August, Met Council leaders reinstated the mask requirement for all facilities. All employees who are inside Met Council facilities must wear a face covering – regardless of vaccination status. This applies to all Met Council employees, officers, Council members, contractors, vendors, and volunteers when in the workplace or public service environment. We are recommending that visitors wear masks.
To support this requirement, our previous Face Coverings Procedure (PDF) is once again in effect, which includes requirements to practice physical distancing. Employees who don't follow the procedure may be subject to disciplinary action, as specified in the procedure.
The procedure includes a list of scenarios where the temporary removal of masks indoors is allowed, including when eating or drinking and physical distancing is maintained, during activities where a mask may compromise safety, and when the employee is alone in an office, room, or cubicle (with walls higher than face level and physical distancing is maintained).
For more details on the mask requirement, read the Aug. 5 COVID-19 update email.
Met Council COVID-19 cases and vaccination rates
The Met Council has 30 current (active) cases of COVID-19, and we have had 27 new cases since our last newsletter two weeks ago.
Based on recent information from HealthPartners and the state's vaccine tracking, more than 75% of Met Council employees have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine and more than 71% have completed the vaccine series. Note that we do not have specific information about who is vaccinated from HealthPartners; we only receive summary data.
Tools to help you find vaccination opportunities
As of Tuesday (Aug. 31), 3,322,642 Minnesotans had received at least one vaccine dose and 3,122,523 people had completed the vaccine series. For up-to-date information on vaccine availability and distribution, visit the Minnesota Department of Health vaccine dashboard.
Our progress so far – and our path forward – relies on Minnesotans getting the vaccine. The vaccines are free, safe, and effective, and all Minnesotans age 12 and over can get one right now. Many sites are now offering walk-in appointments.
Check out these tools to find vaccine appointments:
Important reminders related to the vaccine:
- For the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines to last longer and be most effective against variants, two shots are required. If you’ve missed your second dose for any reason, get it as soon as possible.
- It takes at least two weeks from the final vaccine dose to develop immunity.
- Even after you are fully vaccinated, you should continue to follow safety recommendations by public health officials and get tested if you are showing symptoms of COVID-19.
|
Continue testing to stop the spread of COVID-19
Anyone who is experiencing COVID-19 symptoms should immediately contact their health care provider and seek testing, regardless of their vaccination status. How to get a COVID-19 test:
Teleworking staff: Check MetNet FAQ for details
As part of the telework transition, departments are providing general direction, and employees and managers will work together on their individual plans. The teleworker's new schedule will fall into one of four categories: 100% onsite, hybrid A (primarily onsite), hybrid B (primarily remote), or 100% remote.
Teleworking employees should check out the Telework Transition FAQ page on MetNet for details and tools for planning for and implementing their new schedules. This page is a living document and is updated regularly when we have new information or guidance to share.
This FAQ page includes the following information:
- Overview of the four hybrid workplace schedules
- Initial details on technology and workspaces
- Helpful tools and required forms for planning (Telework Agreement form coming soon)
- Details on the updated Telework Procedure
- Required trainings on the Telework Procedure and working in a hybrid environment (coming soon)
If your questions are not answered on this page, please ask your manager or supervisor. Or, if you would like to ask anonymously, submit your question or comment in the online COVID-19 form. Others may be wondering the same thing. We will review submissions and try to address the question or concern in the FAQ or other upcoming communication.
Check the MetNet pages, FAQs
For the most current information related to the COVID-19 pandemic, visit the MetNet page and be sure to review the FAQs for staff and managers. The telework transition FAQ page has details for teleworking staff. They are updated as we have new information to communicate.
For Metro Transit work instructions and daily updates on new COVID-19 cases reported at each worksite, visit the Metro Transit MetNet page. For job aids and facilities updates for Environmental Services related to COVID-19, visit the Environmental Services page.
If you have questions, talk to your manager or supervisor or submit a question or concern in the online COVID-19 form.
Check out the latest issues of our internal newsletters:
For those who cannot easily access MetNet and/or would like a printable PDF of the FAQs, here are the most recent versions of these pages:
Met Council workforce statistics
The following statistics related to COVID-19 have been reported to the Employee Resource Center. The "active positive COVID-19" number is the number of employees who currently have a positive COVID-19 diagnosis. The "cumulative" number marks the total number of employees who received a positive COVID-19 diagnosis since the pandemic began. The second table breaks down the positive cases by division for Community Development (CD), Environmental Services (ES), Metro Transit (MT), Metropolitan Transportation Services (MTS), and Regional Administration (RA).
Employees with positive COVID-19 diagnosis:
| |
Councilwide |
| Active positive COVID-19 |
30 |
| Cumulative COVID-19 since onset |
598 |
Employees with positive COVID-19 diagnosis by division:
These division numbers are reported by Human Resources weekly. This table reflects changes since the last update email (July 22).
|
Division
|
New cases |
Total to date |
Returned to work |
Current active |
|
CD
|
0 |
2 |
2 |
0 |
| ES |
2 |
91 |
83 |
8 |
| MT |
25 |
492 |
470 |
22 |
| MTS |
0 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
| RA |
0 |
12 |
12 |
0
|
| Total |
27 |
598 |
568 |
30
|
| 
