When most people think about workplace safety, they think of being safe around machinery, ergonomics, and maybe preventing slip and falls. The OSHA requirements go beyond that. It requires that we provide a healthy and safe work environment.

That means in order to help our employees stay healthy and safe at work, we start with providing guidance. That includes giving them structure and information on how they should implement correct personal hygiene, social distancing, and if possible, work remotely from home.

Here’s what the CDC and the World Health Organization is advising:

  • Create an infectious disease outbreak response plan
  • Allow for flexible work hours and telecommuting
  • Minimize exposure between employees and the public
  • Encourage social distancing by keeping employees 3 feet or more apart
  • Postpone or cancel large work-related meetings or events
  • Discourage unnecessary travel especially by plane

Not to be taken lightly or short cut is to ensure you communicate with your employees about your company’s policy and what they can expect in the event they are directly affected. If one of your employees becomes infected, it is urgent that you immediately notify your entire staff, without disclosing the employee’s name. The fine line here is that you must comply with the HIPAA requirements of keeping personal medical information confidential.

The next thing, to be compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), is to accommodate those employees who cannot work remotely with permission to be off of work if they are sick, have a sick relative they must help care for or if their child’s school is closed. California already has a required paid sick leave of 24 hours a year.

Beyond paid sick leave, here are other options for employees who may be sick or need to help care for their sick relatives:

  • Paid Family Leave – it is not paid for by the employer. It is a partial wage replacement paid through the California EDD.
  • Short term disability insurance – again this is a partial wage replacement paid through the California EDD or a third party as decided by the employer.
  • Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) – for employers with 50 or more employees, guarantees eligible employees up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave each year with no threat of job loss. It also requires that employers maintain the health benefits for eligible workers.

If you must temporarily suspend your business operations and have to do a temporary lay-off, your employees may be eligible for unemployment insurance. Employees can apply and get approval on-line.

One of the most important things to do is to be transparent with your employees in terms of company decisions moving forward that may affect their role and what you have in mind for business operations, if different from the usual. Taking this approach will help maintain the trust of your employees while building good will in the community.  Employees talk about what goes on at work. Plus, we never know what’s next in our constantly evolving labor ecosystem. As employers, we want to be sure that our businesses are seen as a place where people want to work.

If you need help with your communications or a plan for infectious diseases, we’ve developed a solution geared for small businesses. We will provide this at no cost to our current clients. We’re here to help.

Do you have a plan in place for how to deal with COVID-19 in your workplace?

We can help with a plan for how to help you deal with COVID-19 and the communications to your employees to support you and your business. To learn more, reply to this email or call Karen at 408-834-9069.