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SPECIAL REPORT CORONAVIRUS
ILL PREPARED
The Coronavirus outbreak has
already caused significant
disruption and is spreading
rapidly across China and the rest
of the world as more and more
people become infected. Despite
the number of deaths currently
reported, the pathogen causing
the disease isn’t as virulent as
SARS, MERS or Ebola. At the time
of writing, the fatality rate was
two per cent, and most of those
are vulnerable people, which
means they’re already ill, they
have damaged immune systems, or
they’re elderly.
Of course, panicking will only worsen
the situation. What we really need is
disciplined, comprehensive and urgent
action by everybody, which will help
the world to minimise the potentially
devastating e ects.
As we watch the drama unfold,
professionals everywhere are thinking:
How will Coronavirus a ect business?
The virus is already a global
phenomenon with the potential to
disrupt global economies. The fact that
most people reading this are in the
world’s western hemisphere – far away
from the source of the outbreak in
China’s Wuhan Province – is irrelevant.
Wherever you are in the world, you
must consider how you will keep your
employees safe and your business
running. Planning for a potential
outbreak so that you can take prompt
remedial action is the way forward.
Many organisations have already
appointed an executive to proactively
guide and advise the rest of the
workforce on what measures should
be taken now, and actions to consider
in the event of an outbreak in the
workplace.
In general, there’s no one-size-fitsall
approach as the plan must reflect
the nature and geographic spread of
your business. However, the following
considerations and actions apply to all
businesses.
Infection management
This should be part of any employee
30 MARCH 2020
centred, healthy workplace. According
to the British Cleaning Council, the
best way of controlling it is the same
as how you would deal with the flu,
and patients should follow the catch it,
bin it and kill it advice – use tissues if
you sneeze, dispose of them properly
and make sure you wash your hands
regularly. If you do have symptoms,
avoid others and seek medical help.
The World Health Organisation
(WHO) is working closely with global
experts, governments and partners to
rapidly expand scientific knowledge on
this new virus, to track the spread and
virulence of the virus. It has created
a website which is updated regularly
to provide advice to countries and
individuals on measures to protect
health and prevent the spread of the
outbreak. The NHS has also published
advice which includes some do’s and
don’ts to help halt the spread of the
virus.
It’s also very important to think of
the Coronavirus as a one-o . With
other viral out-breaks likely to occur in
the future, planning for them becomes
a business priority, especially for
multinational organisations.
Communication is key
Should concerns arise, first and
foremost, keeping schtum on the
issue can create further unrest. So,
it’s critical to communicate openly
and transparently with your sta ,
especially as your business priorities
should be protecting your employees
and other assets.
Consult with employees, be aware
of their travel schedules, review your
current policies and procedures, so
that if, and when, the unthinkable
happens, you are prepared.
Appoint gatekeepers to plan and
agree on the necessary action to
be taken for your business. This
group should be empowered to
take reasonable action in the case
of potential crisis. Many global
organisations have identified severity
levels and mapped these to the
various countries a ected, allowing
them to be consistent and considered
in their approach.
Here’s an example of an action plan
based on severity levels:
Level 1 – Low risk
Many companies have chosen to ban
travel to a ected areas, not just for
business purposes but also personal
reason for travelling such as holidays.
Self-quarantine may be an option if
an employee and his/her immediate
circle of colleagues is at risk. In this
case, you should consider home
working practices. You might also
decide to put the employee(s) in
question on discretionary pay or
an enforced holiday. You must also
consider whether failure to self-isolate
will be a cause for disciplinary action.
It is also important to collate all
travel requirements from employees
and identify essential and nonessential
travel.
Level 2 – Medium risk
At this stage, it would be beneficial
to check all your business insurance
policies (especially health and
disability, key employees, business
and continuity) for any get-out clauses
or exclusions relating to phenomena
such as Coronavirus before you renew
these policies.
At the same time, review your o ice
cleaning arrangements and consider
deep cleaning your workplace for a
prolonged period.
You may also decide to postpone
or review site visits from customers,
suppliers, or sta from other locations,
requesting visitors adhere to any new
rules you enforce around quarantine
and hygiene. Of course, it’s best to
advise visitors in advance of new
requirements.
You’ll also need to start thinking
about establishing executive
successors – who are your key decision
makers and what would need to
happen if they were to report their
own illness?
Level 3 – High risk
At this stage, you’ll need to think
about the main implications that
would result from shutting down your
location. If you’re very lucky, your
business may still be fully operational
if everyone works from home and
there’s a complete travel ban. But
for most organisations, this would
result in major challenges, including
significant revenue losses.
You must also consider your supply
chain. Will a single point of failure
bring your business to its knees?
Taking all these steps into
consideration, now is the time to
plan the business actions you’ll
take to prepare for a Coronavirus
outbreak.
Julie Provino, international HR expert and CEO and founder
of HR consultancy VeryHR off ers some essential advice on
how your business should prepare for the Coronavirus
How can you stop coronaviruses spreading?
How can you stop coronaviruses spreading?
If you need to cough or sneeze You should wash hands with soap & water or hand sanitiser
If you need to cough or sneeze You should wash hands with soap & water or hand sanitiser
Before
leaving
home
After breaks
& activities
After using
the toilet
Bin it
Kill it
by washing
your hands with
soap & water or
hand sanitiser
On arrival
at work
Catch it
with a tissue
Before
cooking
& eating
Try not to touch your
eyes, nose, and mouth
with unwashed hands
Do not share items that come
into contact with your mouth
such as cups & bottles
If unwell do not share
items such as bedding,
dishes, pencils & towels
WORK
Before
leaving
home
After breaks
& activities
After using
the toilet
Bin it
Kill it
by washing
your hands with
soap & water or
hand sanitiser
On arrival
at work
Catch it
with a tissue
Before
cooking
& eating
Try not to touch your
eyes, nose, and mouth
with unwashed hands
Do not share items that come
into contact with your mouth
such as cups & bottles
If unwell do not share
items such as bedding,
dishes, pencils & towels
WORK
If you Catch with a tissue
Try eyes,with