Pittsburgh Public Schools employees share concerns about lack of safety plan for food service

PITTSBURGH — As the countdown toward the first day of school continues, there is major concern from Pittsburgh Public Schools employees who say their health isn’t being put first.

Two different people who work for the district in food service told Channel 11 they haven’t received a solid plan for how they will provide meals during the upcoming school year.

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However, they each said they can’t afford to quit. They asked to remain anonymous out of fear for job safety.

While PPS officials said they have established a “pandemic team” to help implement the best plan possible, these employees said they aren’t comfortable with having school in-person at all.

READ MORE ABOUT THE POSSIBLE PLANS FOR PPS HERE

“We don’t know what we are putting ourselves in jeopardy of doing once we walk into these buildings,” one employee said.

Both employees told Channel 11 the district will be providing face shields for the school year, but they still haven’t received a solid plan.

“It’s a rushed process instead of them taking their time and really trying to figure it out,” an employee said. “I really think that we should all be on e-learning.”

Both said they have children who attend school in the district that will learn virtually when school opens back up, but they’re afraid of what they could bring home to their kids.

PPS employees have been working through the summer to provide meals to students. They told Channel 11 that they only have six people in the building and lunches are placed on a table for pickup.

They said they like that option for now but think a revised plan should be in place for the fall.

One local expert said he agrees with the pickup approach.

“Because of the unpredictability of children’s behavior, it makes sense to just have boxed lunches where there’s no cafeteria workers present and they are just there and picked up,” said Dr. Amesh Adalja, a scholar at Johns Hopkins University. “They will have the meal already there, so that there is minimal interaction between the cafeteria worker or the students or the faculty that’s come through the line so that there isn’t physical lines anymore.”

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