Bogalusa, Louisiana – Maximus with 11 call centers for medicare and Medicaid services, continues to take inadequate precautions to protect its employees at these federally contracted operations.
“While Maximus on Wednesday started making efforts to space workers in the Bogalusa, LA call center where I work two seats apart, it’s not enough. We shouldn’t have to put our families, ourselves, and our communities at risk by coming to work. If the Social Security Administration can work from home, so can we!” said Sylvia Walker from Louisiana.
Maximus employs over 10,000 workers in 11 call centers in nine states who handle Medicare and ACA Federal facilities. Due to the large numbers of employees working in close proximity to these operations, employees are concerned about the transmission of COVID-19.
Jamie Brown from Maximus’ Hattiesburg, MS site reports that workers have been asked to provide children’s birth certificates and proof of school closures to access the childcare leave Maximus states that it is offering all of its call center employees.
Maximus is the largest provider of contact center services to the federal government, and the largest provider of Medicaid administrative services to state governments. Maximus’ poor treatment of its workers has been drawing attention from local and national media. The New York Magazine recently broke a story about Maximus’ national anti-union campaign, revealing the crux of a larger problem at the company. Most Maximus workers are paid low wages while the work is demanding.
“With these critical health and safety concerns, it’s more important than ever that workers have a voice at Maximus — and that the company has an open dialogue with those demanding that voice,” said CWA President Chris Shelton. “Refusing to engage in dialogue with workers is always bad policy, but especially bad policy during a pandemic. The lack of communication puts people at unnecessary risk. Maximus needs to meet with the workers’ organizing committee and discuss policies that will keep workers, their families, and their communities safe.”
