Important Considerations for Creating an Infectious Disease Outbreak
Response Plan
Both companies should be ready to implement measures from Covid-19 to
protect their employees while maintaining organizational continuity. Both
sick workers should stay at home during a Covid-19 outbreak and be
welcomed away from the office, respiratory safety and hand hygiene, and
thorough washing of frequently touched surfaces should be done regularly.
Ensure that the program is flexible, and include your staff in the
production and analysis of your strategy.
Hold a concentrated conversation or exercise using your strategy,
to decide in advance whether there are holes or issues that need to
be addressed.
Share the strategy with workers and explain what programs are
open to them on human resources, job and leave flexibilities, and
pay and benefits.
Exchange best practices with other businesses in your communities
(especially those within your supply chain), chambers of commerce
and organizations to strengthen community response efforts.
Recommendations for an Infectious Disease Outbreak Response Plan
Identify potential work-related threats to your workers and their
safety. Further details on how to protect employees from potential
exposure to Covid-19 is available at OSHA.
Review human resources programs to ensure that policies and
practices are consistent with public health guidelines and in
accordance with current federal and state labor laws.
Consider how policies and procedures such as flexible workplaces
(e.g., telecommuting) and flexible working hours (e.g. staggered
shifts) can be developed to increase physical distance between
workers and between employees and others when state and local
health authorities consider using social distance strategies.
Supervisors should allow workers to telework for employees who
are willing to telework, rather than coming into the office before
symptoms are fully resolved. Make sure you have the information
technology and infrastructure required to support multiple
employees who can work from home.
Identify basic business functions, key positions or responsibilities,
and critical elements within the supply chains (e.g., raw materials,
manufacturers, subcontractor services / products, and logistics)
needed to sustain business operations. Plan how the company will
work if there is growing absenteeism or disruption of those supply
chains.
Establish guidelines, triggers and protocols to enable and stop the
company's infectious disease outbreak response plan, change
business operations (e.g., likely altering or closing operations in the
affected areas), and pass business knowledge to key staff. To
recognize those causes, work closely with your local health
officials.
Aim to minimize exposure between workers and, if public health
officials call for social distancing, also between employees and the
public.
Establish a mechanism for communicating information on your
infectious disease outbreak response plans to employees and
business partners and the latest Covid-19 details; Anticipate stress,
anxiety, rumors, and misinformation among employees, and
schedule contact accordingly.
Early childhood services andK-12 schools may be discontinued in
some communities, particularly if Covid-19 worsens. Determine
how you will work if absenteeism spikes from increased numbers
of sick workers, those who stay at home to care for sick family
members, and those who have to stay at home to watch their kids if
they are fired. Businesses and other employers should be prepared
to set up flexible places of work and leave plans for these workers.
Local conditions will affect public health officials ' decisions
regarding community-level strategies; businesses should now take
the time to learn about the plans in place in each community where
they have a business.
If proof of a Covid-19 outbreak is available in the United States,
consider canceling non-essential business travel to additional
countries via travel guidance on the CDC website;
Certain countries that impose travel restrictions which may
limit employees ' ability to return home if they become ill
while on travel status.
Consider canceling large meetings or activities related to
the job.
Engage state and local health departments to validate
communication channels and strategies for disseminating local
information about the outbreak.
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