A diverse coalition of nearly 120 progressive advocacy groups is urging Congress not to grant corporations sweeping immunity from coronavirus-related workplace safety lawsuits, warning that the Republican-backed proposal could have devastating consequences for both employees and customers.

In a letter (pdf) to Democratic and Republican congressional leaders on Wednesday, the groups said they "strongly oppose any legislation that would establish nationwide immunity for businesses that operate in an unreasonably unsafe manner, causing returning workers and consumers to risk Covid-19 infection."

"When workplaces are not properly protected, patients, customers, clients, and the community are all at risk," reads the letter, which was led by Public Citizen and the Center for Justice and Democracy. "This concern is not hypothetical. Some essential businesses have already put employees back in the workforce without ensuring their safety. As a result, infections have spread in and out of the workplace."

The letter came after Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Monday that protecting corporations from coronavirus-related legal action by workers and customers is his "red line" for the next Covid-19 stimulus package.

"This is obscene," Public Citizen tweeted Wednesday. "Mitch McConnell thinks the most pressing threat facing our nation right now is that people might need to take a company to court for doing something dangerous or illegal during this pandemic."

BREAKING: We and 100+ groups are demanding that Congress reject McConnell's disgraceful effort to give legal immunity to corporations that get workers and consumers sick with coronavirus. This is a new low, even for @senatemajldr.https://t.co/17SDUMAGj9 — Public Citizen (@Public_Citizen) April 29, 2020

President Donald Trump has also voiced support for shielding companies from legal responsibility for exposing their workers to Covid-19, a proposal pushed by the Koch network and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

"We are trying to take liability away from these companies," Trump said during a press briefing last week. "We just don't want that because we want the companies to open and to open strong."

SCROLL TO CONTINUE WITH CONTENT Never Miss a Beat. Get our best delivered to your inbox.







According to the Washington Post, the Trump administration is considering issuing "a liability waiver that would clear businesses of legal responsibility from employees who contract the coronavirus on the job."

Debbie Berkowitz, director of the worker safety and health program at the National Employment Law Project, condemned the idea as "one of the most appalling things I've heard in the context of this crisis."

Read the progressive groups' letter in full: