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Toronto frontline workers explain the risks and rewards of working through the COVID-19 crisis

Illustrations of frontline workers by Sholem Krishtalka

At 7:30 pm each night, many Torontonians step out onto balconies, porches and lawns to make noise and thank the frontline workers who getting the city through the coronavirus pandemic.

The COVID-19 crisis has sharpened our focus on work that we consider “essential” – the nature of that work, how the pandemic has changed it, how that work is compensated and the job conditions under which it takes place. These workers stock shelves in supermarkets, offer support in shelters, care for patients in emergency rooms, clean intensive care units, cook meals in food banks, among other jobs, to keep us safe and healthy.

The pandemic should prompt deeper political conversations around how we value our frontline workers now and in the future. We spoke to eight people who have not stopped working since COVID-19 sent Toronto into lock-down mode to find out how the crisis has intensified the highs and lows of their jobs.

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