His employer — a company that makes automobile accessories such as floor mats and steering wheel covers — says he's an essential worker and must report for duty.

He disagrees. The factory, he says, makes things people want but don't necessarily need.

"This corporation is putting profits above people," said the man, who lives in southeast Michigan and, like the rest of the workers interviewed for this story, asked not to be named for fear of repercussions at work. The company is "doing it under the guise of 'we're allowing you to make money.' Yes, but you're also allowing us a higher chance of contracting this disease."

And now he's left with a decision.

Go to work where he makes a little more than $15 an hour and risk getting sick.

Use the week of paid time off he's accrued, though doing so would leave him with no sick days and he's not sure that's such a good idea in this climate.

Take a two week unpaid leave of absence.

Or quit his job.

The way he sees it, he can't afford to do any of those things.

Required work, but no protection

A pediatric occupational therapist who works in an outpatient setting on the west side of the state said her employer isn't equipped with proper masks to protect her and her coworkers from the coronavirus which causes the illness COVID-19; she's scared and wants to stay at home.We are going to great lengths to keep the buildings extremely clean and help employees practice important precautions such as social distancing and other measures.

A man who works at a metro Detroit Amazon fulfillment center was nervous because, he said, there didn't seem to be a ready supply of sanitizing wipes in the building. “We’re not first responders or anything like that," he said. But "if you ask people to come to work you should at least provide the basic things, whether it's a basic mask or having those wipes ready to go." After complaining to his bosses, more wipes arrived. ( "We are going to great lengths to keep the buildings extremely clean and help employees practice important precautions such as social distancing and other measures," an Amazon spokesperson said.)

For countless people across the state who work in businesses that remain open during the coronavirus pandemic, there is disappointment, dismay and genuine fear. "I'm getting a little more afraid,'' said a Detroit area UPS driver. The virus can live on cardboard, including boxes, for up to 24 hours.

Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer made some exceptions when she issued a stay-at-home order in an attempt to stem the spread of COVID-19. All businesses, she said, are to cease in-person contact through April 13 and send employees home — unless they are essential to sustain or protect life.

Among the industries exempted from the governor's plan: health care, public safety, food and agriculture, energy, transportation and public works.

"Don’t play fast and loose with what’s essential and what is not," Whitmer warned when she announced the order on March 23. "Don’t try to skirt the rules. If you’re not an essential business, you need to close and you need to protect your employees and we’re confident that the vast majority of people will do the right thing."

The factory worker isn't so confident. “They say we are part of the transportation industry," he said. "We literally make accessories!"

The occupational therapist questions her company's decision, too. "I’m not helping kids who are in cancer treatment," she reasoned. "Some of them have autism diagnoses. Some of them are just delayed ... Am I bettering their life? Yes. . ... I'm not sustaining their life."

A metro Detroit woman who works the floor at an outdoor superstore didn't think she was sustaining anyone's life either, though her employer did and assigned her to work despite the stay at home order.

The rationale: The store sells portable generators and water purifiers — though those listed on the store's website seem to be most suitable for camping or traveling to underdeveloped countries — as well as hunting and fishing equipment people can use to feed their families. (Although, really, the worker said, "The fact that everybody's buying guns and we've got guns to sell ... I believe is the only reasons we're staying open.")

In need of an income and the health insurance — a critically ill family member who lives with her depends on it — she thought she had no choice but to go to work and hope she could avoid getting the virus, and passing it along to her family member.

In the end, she struck a deal.

The retailer agreed to give her two weeks off with pay if she produced a doctor's note saying she was self quarantining. She got the note. And she's staying home, trying to keep her family safe.

She was lucky.

For some it's no work, no pay

The new Families First Act requires employers with fewer than 500 workers to allow employees two weeks off with pay if they are: in quarantine or have a doctor's note saying they should be isolated due to coronavirus concerns; taking care of someone else who is in quarantine; taking care of children whose daycare has been closed due to the coronavirus.

But there's no rule that says employers have to pay workers who don't show up simply because they're afraid of the coronavirus, said Deborah Gordon, a Bloomfield Hills attorney who specializes in employment law and civil rights.

"Businesses are trying to stay in business and employees are trying to stay healthy and a lot of times that’s at cross purposes,” Gordon said.

Jeff Burg, a Bingham Farms employment attorney, said workers who don't believe they are essential and are fired for not going to work may be able to sue their employers. But filing a lawsuit doesn't assure victory in court. The employee would have to prove that the business was not essential to sustaining or protecting life and therefore operating illegally.

"If the employer is providing a bunch of safeguards, procedures to keep things sanitized, then it's probably a good idea to go to work," Burg said. “Its better to have your job than a lawsuit, if you can do it.”

Pandemic prompts evaluation

The automotive accessories maker likes his job; he wanted to build his career at his company.

But now, he can't help but feel wary. "The people that are working retail and the people that are working in these plants and places across the country, the majority of us are lower income people. It's not the upper class people that are worried about this at all because they're safe and secure in their office and in their homes. It makes us feel like working class people are expendable."

The more he thought about the situation, the more upset he became.

He had to do something.

The Michigan Occupational Health and Safety Administration is accepting complaints from workers who believe their employers are putting their health and safety at danger by not providing adequate safeguards to protect them from the coronavirus. For information: click here.

Attorney General Dana Nessel's office has told people to contact their local police agency if they believe their employers are violating the state's stay at home rule.

And so, the factory worker decided he would call the police.

"This crisis ... that we're in, it's shedding a light on a lot of things," he said. "It makes you consider who you're working for and what your values and ethics are."

Contact Georgea Kovanis: gkovanis@freepress.com