City workers 65 and older back on the job here, but county employees still home on paid leave.
Helfenberger
Seventeen Lake City Hall employees are being allowed to resume in-person duties, after they were initially told they’d have to work from home due to unclear wording in the governor’s statewide emergency order pertaining to senior citizens. Though the city believes Tallahassee has cleared up the muddy waters, the county wasn’t so sure as of Tuesday afternoon — highlighting the utter confusion brought about by the language included in the statewide mandate.
The order signed by Gov. Ron DeSantis last week says the general public may only leave home to pursue essential services or activities, but a separate provision appeared to require senior citizens to remain inside — without exception.
“Senior citizens and individuals with a significant underlying medical condition (such as chronic lung disease, moderate-to-severe asthma, serious heart conditions, immunocompromised status, cancer, diabetes, severe obesity, renal failure and liver disease) shall stay at home and take all measures to limit the risk of exposure to covid-19,” the order reads.
After the governor’s office released the text of the order, City Manager Joe Helfenberger said City Hall was told it had to send home all staffers 65 years of age or older. Fortunately, all were in positions that made it possible to work from home, he said.
“Had to tell 17 employees not to show up for work last Friday,” Helfenberger said. “We check with the top labor attorneys, make sure we’re doing it right — and that’s what we were advised.”
Florida law defines a senior citizen as someone 60 or older, but Helfenberger said attorneys interpreted senior citizens as being 65 and above, as the word is commonly understood to mean.
The governor’s office has since offered clarification on whether seniors can leave home, though, and the city was told it can let senior citizens perform their jobs in person now, Helfenberger said.
“That allows otherwise healthy people to work when they want to do so — and we need their help,” Helfenberger said.
The county, however, doesn’t believe older workers can resume office duty.
“The clarification, as I understand, allows seniors to receive essential services such as grocery and pharmacy,” County Manager Ben Scott wrote in a text message Tuesday. “Nothing I have seen allows them to return to work.”
Few county employees were sent home simply because of their age, Scott said.
“There are some whose departments are closed and only a handful that were sent home due to the fact that they are senior citizens,” Scott said by text.
The ones who can’t work from home are still getting paid as a result of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, Scott said. The bipartisan legislation was forged through several days of intense negotiations by both parties and signed into law by President Trump.
Media outlets throughout the state, including the Lake City Reporter and the Tampa Bay Times, spoke with multiple attorneys and legal experts about the order and got the same interpretation — senior citizens had to stay home. Period.
The office of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis contradicted that reading of the order by releasing a list of answers to frequently asked questions on Friday.
“Q: May senior citizens and individuals with significant medical conditions leave their homes to go to the grocery store or pharmacy, or go for a walk, or go to work at an essential service? How do I know what qualifies as an essential activity?”
“A: Yes - they may leave their homes when necessary to obtain or provide essential services or conduct essential activities.”
Buying groceries, visiting the doctor, caring for a friend or family member and filling up on gas are all considered essential activities, according to the text of the order. Hunting, fishing and similar outdoor recreational activities are also deemed essential, provided social distancing guidelines are obeyed.
Church services are also essential activities, departing from the shelter-in-place orders adopted by other states.
In addition to essential activities, the governor’s order also refers to essential services. The order essential commercial and government services based on a sweeping list compiled by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and a measure enacted in Miami-Dade County.
All businesses are encouraged to provide delivery, carry-out or curbside services.
Stores like Walmart, Publix and Winn-Dixie are considered essential, as are banks, accounting firms, gas stations, dry cleaners, hotels and funeral homes, just to name a few.
Farmer workers, power company employees and truck drivers are included, as well.
The list of essential employees goes on and on far beyond those examples.
Recreation-based businesses such as bowling alleys, barber shops and skating rinks are not considered essential.