[Mick]

I personally believe that this approach is doomed to failure. There are just too many people infected and too many are asymptomatic. We're going to have to let people under 65 go back to work with the knowledge that some will get sick and a few will die. We do the same with influenza. Start with the 20-40 age group if necessary. Once there is a high degree of previous infection in that age group the virus will spread more slowly.

By all accounts, that's largely the method South Korea used to flatten the curve and get things down to where today they reported no new deaths from COVID-19 for the first time in 38 days:
[tweet]https://twitter.com/guardian/status/1253179142750814209?s=20[/tweet]
Do you just think that their approach is not feasible in the United States?

Speaking as one of the "20-40 age group," what do you mean by "let go back to work?" I already am working -- from home. And if my employer told me, "you have to get back in the office, we have immunity from liability for your death or serious illness, and some of you will just have to take it on the chin if you get sick and/or die," needless to say, I wouldn't be very happy. There has to be a better way than that.

I think there already is a better way, particularly if you're working from home.

I'd be very much surprised if employers forced employees to go back to work if they don't need to be in a specific facility.  I just ran a COVID-19 "Return to Work" survey, and few employers intend to force employees back to work.  And for many firms, ours included, management is finding out that employees who work from home are very productive, particularly if they no longer have lengthy commutes and have project-based workflow.  And to be candid, I suspect many, if not most companies are eyeing their real estate-related costs (leasing, utilities, etc.) and visualizing a nice add to the bottom line without them.  I know we're doing that.

As for employees with jobs that necessitate being inside a facility who don't want to return to a facility...there's 26 million+ workers who desperately want jobs in a market where there are none.  it's going to be an employer's market for quite a while, particularly as we stall returning to work.

[Mick]

I personally believe that this approach is doomed to failure. There are just too many people infected and too many are asymptomatic. We're going to have to let people under 65 go back to work with the knowledge that some will get sick and a few will die. We do the same with influenza. Start with the 20-40 age group if necessary. Once there is a high degree of previous infection in that age group the virus will spread more slowly.

By all accounts, that's largely the method South Korea used to flatten the curve and get things down to where today they reported no new deaths from COVID-19 for the first time in 38 days:
[tweet]https://twitter.com/guardian/status/1253179142750814209?s=20[/tweet]
Do you just think that their approach is not feasible in the United States?

Speaking as one of the "20-40 age group," what do you mean by "let go back to work?" I already am working -- from home. And if my employer told me, "you have to get back in the office, we have immunity from liability for your death or serious illness, and some of you will just have to take it on the chin if you get sick and/or die," needless to say, I wouldn't be very happy. There has to be a better way than that.

I think there already is a better way, particularly if you're working from home.

I'd be very much surprised if employers forced employees to go back to work if they don't need to be in a specific facility.  I just ran a COVID-19 "Return to Work" survey, and few employers intend to force employees back to work.  And for many firms, ours included, management is finding out that employees who work from home are very productive, particularly if they no longer have lengthy commutes and have project-based workflow.  And to be candid, I suspect many, if not most companies are eyeing their real estate-related costs (leasing, utilities, etc.) and visualizing a nice add to the bottom line without them.  I know we're doing that.

As for employees with jobs that necessitate being inside a facility who don't want to return to a facility...there's 26 million+ workers who desperately want jobs in a market where there are none.  it's going to be an employer's market for quite a while, particularly as we stall returning to work.