North Korea's state media reported on Sunday (August 27) that the country has taken steps to further open up from strict isolation of the Covid pandemic era. The citizens living abroad will reportedly be allowed to reenter the country.

State-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) mentioned an announcement from the State Emergency Epidemic Prevention Headquarters which said "citizens abroad have been allowed to return home".

"Those returned will be put under proper medical observation at quarantine wards for a week," the report said. 
 
It added that the decision had been made "in reference to the eased worldwide pandemic situation."

North Korea closed its borders in early 2020 when coronavirus pandemic began spreading across the world. Now, there are increasing signals that the country is moving towards reopening.

Last month, Chinese and Russian officials attended a military parade in North Korean capital Pyongyang. These were the first foreign dignitaries to visit the country in years.

A delegation of athletes was given permission to attend a taekwondo competition in Kazakhstan. State-run Air Koryo has operated its first international commercial flight in three years.

The flight arrived in Beijing on Tuesday.

Data from a tracking website showed that another Air Koryo flight headed to Pyongyang departed shortly after 1 pm.

AFP quoted Chinese foreign ministry who said that it had approved restart of commercial air travel between Pyongyang and Beijing.

"During the summer and autumn flight season... the Chinese side approved flight plans for passengers such as the Pyongyang-Beijing and Beijing-Pyongyang routes of Air Koryo," foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin told a regular briefing on Monday. 
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North Korea's state media reported on Sunday (August 27) that the country has taken steps to further open up from strict isolation of the Covid pandemic era. The citizens living abroad will reportedly be allowed to reenter the country.

North Korea's state media reported on Sunday (August 27) that the country has taken steps to further open up from strict isolation of the Covid pandemic era. The citizens living abroad will reportedly be allowed to reenter the country. State-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) mentioned an announcement from the State Emergency Epidemic Prevention Headquarters which said "citizens abroad have been allowed to return home". "Those returned will be put under proper medical observation at quarantine wards for a week," the report said. It added that the decision had been made "in reference to the eased worldwide pandemic situation." North Korea closed its borders in early 2020 when coronavirus pandemic began spreading across the world. Now, there are increasing signals that the country is moving towards reopening. Last month, Chinese and Russian officials attended a military parade in North Korean capital Pyongyang. These were the first foreign dignitaries to visit the country in years. A delegation of athletes was given permission to attend a taekwondo competition in Kazakhstan. State-run Air Koryo has operated its first international commercial flight in three years. The flight arrived in Beijing on Tuesday. Data from a tracking website showed that another Air Koryo flight headed to Pyongyang departed shortly after 1 pm. AFP quoted Chinese foreign ministry who said that it had approved restart of commercial air travel between Pyongyang and Beijing. "During the summer and autumn flight season... the Chinese side approved flight plans for passengers such as the Pyongyang-Beijing and Beijing-Pyongyang routes of Air Koryo," foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin told a regular briefing on Monday.

North Korea finally relaxes Covid isolation, permits citizens abroad to return home

Delta airlines and a large flight attendants union are fighting about whether the company’s new isolation policy for employees who test positive for the coronavirus puts workers and travellers at risk.

The airline’s chief legal officer sent a letter on Friday to the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA saying it had posted “false and defamatory information” about the company’s policies and asking it to correct those statements and stop repeating them. The union, which represents nearly 50,000 flight attendants at 17 airlines and is seeking to unionize Delta’s flight attendants, responded on Tuesday that its statements had been “truthful and accurate.”

Delta’s chief legal officer, Peter Carter, accused the union of trying to sow “fear and confusion” among its employees about the company’s decision to shorten isolation periods to five days, from 10.

The union’s president, Sara Nelson, said Delta was responsible for confusing workers. “We’re glad that AFA’s calling attention to the issues appears to have led Delta to update its policy several times and communicate this to workers,” Nelson said in her letter, which was addressed to Delta’s chief executive, Ed Bastian.

The dispute concerns Delta’s adherence to a recent change by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which has shortened the recommended isolation time to five days for people who are vaccinated and who get the virus, so long as their symptoms are resolving and they have no fever.

The CDC’s updated guidance was released after Delta executives sent the agency a letter arguing that a 10-day isolation period “may significantly impact our workforce and operations.” Some public health experts had also called for updated guidelines.

Airlines cancelled tens of thousands of flights over the holidays in response to bad weather and because thousands of employees called in sick. In a single day, nearly a third of United Airlines employees at Newark Liberty International Airport reported being unable to work. About 3,000 United employees have recently tested positive for the virus.

After the CDC changed its guidance, Delta quickly adjusted its own policies, slashing the COVID-specific paid sick leave to five days for workers who are fully vaccinated, with two additional paid days if they choose to be tested on Day 5 and the results are positive. In accordance with CDC guidelines, it does not require a negative COVID test to return to work. The CDC’s decision not to recommend a test after five days of isolation has been criticized by some scientists.

Unlike the CDC guidance, Delta’s new policies do not explicitly state that workers must be asymptomatic in order to return to work, though the company does say that those who have a fever or who test positive should not return.

Nelson has claimed that the union is “still getting questions from Delta flight attendants about returning to work with a low-grade fever.”

JetBlue similarly shortened isolation periods for employees, allowing them to stay on leave for longer, but without pay, if they provide a doctor’s note.

Nelson criticized the changes, warning airlines that they could put passengers and airline employees at risk. Delta’s pilot union has expressed similar concerns.

“Unfortunately, changing CDC and company guidance, compounded by limited testing availability, has led to confusion among employees who may be returning to work sooner than they should or are comfortable doing so,” the pilots union, the Delta Master Executive Council, said in a statement.

Most flight attendants at large airlines are represented by unions, and Nelson’s organization has been trying to organize Delta for several years.

In his letter to the union, Carter defended the airline’s policies, saying Delta has been “laser-focused on keeping its employees safe and providing them the necessary time off when they are too ill to work” during the pandemic.

Delta airlines and a large flight attendants union are fighting about whether the company’s new isolation policy for employees who test positive for the coronavirus puts workers and travellers at risk.

Delta airlines and a large flight attendants union are fighting about whether the company’s new isolation policy for employees who test positive for the coronavirus puts workers and travellers at risk. The airline’s chief legal officer sent a letter on Friday to the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA saying it had posted “false and defamatory information” about the company’s policies and asking it to correct those statements and stop repeating them. The union, which represents nearly 50,000 flight attendants at 17 airlines and is seeking to unionize Delta’s flight attendants, responded on Tuesday that its statements had been “truthful and accurate.” Delta’s chief legal officer, Peter Carter, accused the union of trying to sow “fear and confusion” among its employees about the company’s decision to shorten isolation periods to five days, from 10. The union’s president, Sara Nelson, said Delta was responsible for confusing workers. “We’re glad that AFA’s calling attention to the issues appears to have led Delta to update its policy several times and communicate this to workers,” Nelson said in her letter, which was addressed to Delta’s chief executive, Ed Bastian. The dispute concerns Delta’s adherence to a recent change by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which has shortened the recommended isolation time to five days for people who are vaccinated and who get the virus, so long as their symptoms are resolving and they have no fever. The CDC’s updated guidance was released after Delta executives sent the agency a letter arguing that a 10-day isolation period “may significantly impact our workforce and operations.” Some public health experts had also called for updated guidelines. Airlines cancelled tens of thousands of flights over the holidays in response to bad weather and because thousands of employees called in sick. In a single day, nearly a third of United Airlines employees at Newark Liberty International Airport reported being unable to work. About 3,000 United employees have recently tested positive for the virus. After the CDC changed its guidance, Delta quickly adjusted its own policies, slashing the COVID-specific paid sick leave to five days for workers who are fully vaccinated, with two additional paid days if they choose to be tested on Day 5 and the results are positive. In accordance with CDC guidelines, it does not require a negative COVID test to return to work. The CDC’s decision not to recommend a test after five days of isolation has been criticized by some scientists. Unlike the CDC guidance, Delta’s new policies do not explicitly state that workers must be asymptomatic in order to return to work, though the company does say that those who have a fever or who test positive should not return. Nelson has claimed that the union is “still getting questions from Delta flight attendants about returning to work with a low-grade fever.” JetBlue similarly shortened isolation periods for employees, allowing them to stay on leave for longer, but without pay, if they provide a doctor’s note. Nelson criticized the changes, warning airlines that they could put passengers and airline employees at risk. Delta’s pilot union has expressed similar concerns. “Unfortunately, changing CDC and company guidance, compounded by limited testing availability, has led to confusion among employees who may be returning to work sooner than they should or are comfortable doing so,” the pilots union, the Delta Master Executive Council, said in a statement. Most flight attendants at large airlines are represented by unions, and Nelson’s organization has been trying to organize Delta for several years. In his letter to the union, Carter defended the airline’s policies, saying Delta has been “laser-focused on keeping its employees safe and providing them the necessary time off when they are too ill to work” during the pandemic.

Delta airlines and a union spar over isolation periods for sick workers

Hospitalization in the US has reached a record high on Monday, with several states struggling to cope with the spike in cases. Now there were 132,000 hospitalizations for Covid, crossing the record set in January last year. But hospitalizations have been increasing steadily since late December, as the Omicron quickly took over Delta as the dominant version of the virus.

United States break Covid hospitalization record

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North Korea finally relaxes Covid isolation, permits citizens abroad to return home

Delta airlines and a union spar over isolation periods for sick workers

United States break Covid hospitalization record