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Experts are now encouraging people to use surgical masks along with KN95 and N95 masks. But those masks aren’t cheap. They’re also meant to be thrown away eventually -- so how long can you use them?

Can you use N95 masks again? Here’s how to care for them

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For Immediate Release                                                                                    
August 16, 2021                                                                                    


Contact:
Verdaillia Turner
404-315-0222

georgia@aftgeorgia.org
http://ga.aft.org

 

 

Statement From the Georgia Federation of Teachers on Prioritizing COVID-19 Testing and the Safe Return to In-Person Learning

Strategic partnership with Inspire Health Alliance continues to facilitate convenient at-home testing


ATLANTA – As we approach the start of the 2021-22 school year, we want to reiterate our

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Photo of AFT President Randi Weingarten addressing TEACH 2023

The AFT has always been a solutions-driven union, and our new campaign, launched during TEACH on July 21, proves it once again with a fresh, practical approach to strengthening public education. As AFT President Randi Weingarten pointed out during her keynote speech, the $5 million, yearlong campaign, “Real Solutions for Kids and Communities,” stands up against attacks on public schools and offers real-world solutions to build up, rather than break down, our communities.

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Randi Weingarten at a Massachusetts high school

Summer is upon us, and parents, children and teachers are winding down from what has been an exhausting and fully operational school year—the first since the devastating pandemic. The long-lasting impact of COVID-19 has affected our students’ and families’ well-being and ignited the politics surrounding public schools. All signs point to the coming school year unfolding with the same sound and fury, and if extremist culture warriors have their way, being even more divisive and stressful.

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What unions do

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In AFT President Randi Weingarten’s latest New York Times  column, she describes what it is exactly that unions do. Though unions are the most popular they have been in decades, anti-union sentiment still thrives in red states and across the nation. “Several years ago, The Atlantic ran a story whose headline made even me, a labor leader, scratch my head: ‘Union Membership: Very Sexy,’” Weingarten writes in the column. “The gist was that higher wages, health benefits and job security—all associated with union membership—boost one’s chances of getting married. Belonging to a union doesn’t actually guarantee happily ever after, but it does help working people have a better life in the here and now.” Click through to read the full column.

The CDC has released new COVID-19 guidelines, including updating its guidance for schools ahead of the new year. A safe and welcoming learning environment is crucial for everyone’s safety. 

 

This link is a summary and some basics    More information is forthcoming.   

 

What stays:

 

  • Equity Focus: Schools play a critical role in promoting equity in learning and health, particularly for groups disproportionately affected by COVID-19. Equity issues need to be considered in all decision-making and decisions and there needs to be equitable access to vaccination, testing, masks and respirators
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Verdaillia Turner, president of the Georgia Federation of Teachers, said teachers have already been protesting some districts’ reopening plans out of fear for their health.

“Teachers did not sign up to give their lives to their jobs, literally, so let’s first get that straight,” she said.

Click here to view full article

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For Immediate Release
August 12, 2021
Contact:
Oriana Korin
202-374-6103
okorin@aft.org
 
 
Leading Teachers Union Passes Resolution on Workplace Vaccine Policies
 
WASHINGTON—The executive council of the American Federation of Teachers last night unanimously passed a resolution guiding the union on workplace vaccination policies. The resolution is one of several passed by the board since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, designed to protect the health and safety of AFT members and the communities we serve. It was brought to the council in light of the significant
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