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US university workers fight a return to campus as COVID-19 cases grow

Faculty members, graduate students and other campus staff file lawsuits and protest against unsafe conditions as institutions reopen.
  1. Emma Marris
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A wave of activism is sweeping US campuses that have reopened after their summer break amid the COVID-19 crisis. Across the country, university workers — including faculty members and staff who teach in classrooms and laboratories, and housekeeping staff who clean dormitories — are pushing back against requirements that they show up on campus alongside undergraduates, thereby, they say, risking their own health.

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Nature 585, 334-335 (2020)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-020-02557-1

Updates & Corrections

  • Clarification 09 September 2020: This story was updated to make clear that although Northern Arizona University invites employees to ask for remote working arrangements during the COVID-19 pandemic, unless they have a disability that puts them at elevated risk, there's no guarantee a request will be granted.

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