Returning to Work and Getting it Right!

June 10, 2020 By Leave a Comment

These are stressful times for all of us.

build collaboration in your workplacesIt will not be easy as people are returning to the workplace. Leaders and managers must get out of their offices and purposefully engage with the people. They need to talk about the COVID-19 problem, share what is happening, and talk about the problems with which they are dealing. They need to do this with openness, honesty, respect, and caring. This is not just a one-off contact; leaders and managers need to engage in these conversations every day!

People are deeply concerned about returning to work and what they may face regarding the COVID-19 situation. Leaders and managers must not ignore or down-play the people’s concerns. If the people do not have confidence in their leaders and feel that they are being ignored, they will take other steps to protect themselves. Being indifferent to the people and ignoring their concerns is the first step to bringing in OSHA, a union or aggravating the union you have. You already have enough problems.

This is a time of real test for those in leadership positions. It is time to build a more collaborative workplace.

  • Do you really care about your people?
  • Do you really listen to the people and try to understand their concerns?
  • Can you honestly, really share with the people the challenges the business is facing and ask for the people’s help so everyone can be safe?

Show caring for them and their families. This is a time to .

In a recent LinkedIn post, Bruce Wayne with Johnson of Sims Crane & Equipment Company of Clearwater, FL, shared some really good ideas about what leaders need to be doing. For example, he talked about building trust, listening, showing appreciation, apologizing for mistakes, giving credit where it is due. I built on this posting by adding that leaders need to show courage, make the tough decisions, and address the complex problems. Leaders need to talk with the people about why they are making these decisions, help them to understand where you are coming from, and ask for their help in solving the problems.

Tell the truth as best you can. If things change, then go back and tell the people what changed and keep them in the loop. People can handle difficult news, but they will not tolerate misinformation or lies. Leaders must balance the people side and the business side of things.

Continuously talking with the people about what is going on and asking for their help in finding the best way to work together to minimize the COVID-19 hazard is important leadership and managership work.

Get everyone engaged in helping each other and do the social distancing and take the other precautions that are needed. Be sure that everyone has and uses the appropriate PPE.

Filed Under: Safety for Business, Safety Leadership Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

COVID-19 Return-to-Work Standards

May 11, 2020 By Leave a Comment

On April 15, 2020, David Sparkman of EHS Today, wrote about new guidance from the CDC regarding COVID-19.

returning to work after the pandemicI have abstracted it here for those reading this newsletter since you may have missed it.

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recently offered guidance for people returning to work who have been through the COVID-19 illness. The CDC had recommended that people self-isolate for 14 days after recovering from COVID-19. The CDC has now created two, more flexible standards for people returning to work after recovering from COVID-19. According to the CDC these recommendations will prevent most incidents of secondary spread of the virus.

Several requirements are still in effect:

  • If an employee arrives at work showing COVID-19 symptoms, that
    person needs to be separated from other employees and sent home.
  • If an employee becomes sick during the day, that person needs to be separated and sent home.

First, under the new guidance, when someone returns to work after the COVID-19 home isolation, the employer needs to:

  • be sure that at least three days (72 hours) have passed since their recovery, meaning they have not run a fever without the use of fever-reducing medications,
  • respiratory symptoms such as coughing and shortness of breath have improved,
  • and at least seven days have passed since symptoms first symptoms first appeared.

OR

Second, if the employee is tested to determine if they are still contagious, they can also leave home after these three conditions have been met:

  • The employee no longer has a fever without the use of fever reducing medication.
  • Symptoms like coughing and shortness of breath have improved.
  • The employee has received two negative tests in a row, 24 hours apart, when the patient’s doctor is following the CDC guidelines.

Change is upon us - big time. How will you greet these return-to-work changes?In all cases, the healthcare provider and local health department should be consulted.

If an employee tests positive for COVID-19, the employer needs to inform other employees of the possible exposure and keep track of whom they have talked with for disease tracking purposes by health officials.

Please pay very careful attention to and help employees who are over 60 and/or have some preexisting condition like a heart problem or diabetes since they are much more vulnerable to this highly contagious virus. About 85% of those who go into hospital are over 65 and about half of them die.

This is a very tough disease!

Filed Under: Safety for Business, Safety Leadership Tagged With: , , , , , , , , ,

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