BHS Staff Risk Firing Traveling to High-Risk COVID States

In an internal memo to staff last week in response to new state travel restrictions, Berkshire Health Systems said that workers risk losing paid leave time or being fired if they travel to a state where the coronavirus is rapidly spreading.

The memo, written by Patrick Borek, vice president of human resources, said that the company needs to keep staff levels up during the pandemic while also ensuring deserved and needed time off for employees.

The automatic 14-day quarantine, and testing unavailability elsewhere, could make it hard for employees to return to work immediately after a vacation, Borek said.

The memo came in response to Baker's July 24 travel order to keep Massachusetts sealed off from a virus that is spreading fast in most of the country.

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