Covid-19 is arguably the most difficult enemy we’ve faced over the last decade. While the mortality rate of this virus is quite low, especially among the younger generation, it can still cause complications to those infected. Furthermore, since this is a relatively new disease, we still don’t know if there are long-lasting effects on those who tested positive.
What makes the disease more dangerous is the fast and easy transmission. Recent studies suggest that it’s airborne, which means that just being around someone positive will most likely cause you to receive the virus.
On the other hand, we understand that businesses and employees alike need to find ways on how to keep their operations running to generate enough money to feed their families. That’s why businesses should make it a point to employ various safety measures to ensure that all the employees are safe. This article will help with that.
General Guidelines
There are many ways for businesses to combat this virus, ranging from the most complex to the ones that can be enforced immediately. Having said that, here are several safety measures businesses can follow to keep their employees Covid-free.
Disinfection
Did you know that Covid-19 can stay on surfaces for extended periods of time, depending on the surface material? If an employee accidentally touches an area exposed to the virus, there’s a higher risk of infection not just to that employee but also to the whole team and other people he/she may interact with. That’s why disinfection is still the most important aspect of managing Covid. Ensure that your sanitation team disinfects bathrooms and other common areas regularly to ensure that it’s safe from the virus.
Ventilation
Another thing you may want to take note of is ventilation. Since there is strong proof that Covid-19 is airborne, keeping your employees inside an enclosed room and using an air-conditioning unit to keep the area cool is unsafe. The indoor air will not escape and will only circulate inside the room. This means that if an infected person coughs, sneezes, or even talks, there’s a chance that the virus will travel to different parts of the room and infect other people. Instead of using air-conditioning units, open the windows of your business facility so that the air from the outside can freely move indoors and vice versa.
Physical Distancing
Make sure that you also follow physical distancing inside the office. Employees should be at least six meters apart at all times. This means that your business facility would most likely be incapable of operating at full capacity. You can try using a modified schedule wherein some employees would only have to go to the business office twice a week and work from their homes for the other three days.
Paid Leaves
An employee would most probably still go to work despite feeling sick and uneasy. That’s because they can’t afford the deductions that may reflect on their salary if they quarantine themselves for two weeks. That’s why your business should also make it a point to provide paid leaves to employees who fall sick.
Extra Measures
Aside from the general guidelines we’ve mentioned above, your business can also take extra measures to put an end to this virus. This means that you’re making a conscious effort not just in ensuring that your business can run despite the pandemic but also to guarantee that the virus is stopped. Here are some of the things you can do.
Covid Facility
The first contribution you can make is to build a Covid facility within your business. This would help provide employees who tested positive with a place to stay to not spread the virus to other people. You may need to coordinate with the local government and look for general contracting services to build the facility. But what you have to keep in mind is that this will significantly improve our chances of winning the fight against this virus.
Vaccine Acquisition
You could also use your network or connections to acquire vaccines, not just for you but for your employees as well. It’s up to you whether you will use your business’s budget to fund this or include it in your employees’ health benefits, but getting them vaccinated will not just help your business but the entire world as well. If more people become immune to Covid-19, then that means there’s a lower chance for them to carry the virus. This will significantly reduce the spread of Covid-19 and bring your business operations back to normal.
Covid-19 has brought detrimental effects on businesses all over the globe. There’s no doubt about it. With an enemy as vicious as this, our bare minimum efforts would most probably not solve the problem. We need to understand our responsibilities and combine our capabilities towards defeating this virus if we wish to return to our normal lives.