Fears about the novel coronavirus are abundant Many people have been advised now to work from home, but there are some jobs that can’t just shut down. From medical workers to grocery workers, thousands of employees are not getting the option, and are having their health be put at risk for the services they provide. These are the necessary professions, and who knows what many would do without them.

“If no one was working then we wouldn’t be able to get food to survive and those people won’t get paid because… it’s their only way to provide either for themselves or their families,” Freshman Kalynn McCrary said.

There are many commendable things to say about employees on the front line because, without them, there would be a lack of numerous necessities. The grocery stores, hospitals, delivery workers, and more are working right now with only a dedication to the people they serve.

“I definitely think that healthcare workers deserve more praise because they willingly work such long hours knowing they’re putting themselves at risk. I also think that fast food and grocery store workers deserve way more credit…I would like to think that I would have the courage to do what they do but I guess I wouldn’t really know unless I was put into one of those situations myself,” Junior Mikayla McCord said.

COVID-19 poses real threats to employees. As of April 15 according to the World Health Organization, there were 23,338 confirmed cases of coronavirus in the state of California. Even though it is very brave of these employees to go out, it is also very dangerous because any one of the sick people could possibly come into contact with them. Two anonymous employees at a Ripon business describes what they are putting at risk at the same time as their health.

“Family and other people, and I know for us, when we aren’t working we aren’t getting paid, so like if you have bills you can’t pay, a lot of companies only give you limited time of pay to get better,” the employees said.