Treasure 
Health and safety at work are a priority around the world. The COVID-19 Pandemic has affected many organizations globally. As a certified ISO 45001 (OHSMS) Lead Auditor and OH&S Inspector, I think it’s appropriate to drop this here.
During an infectious outbreak, employers worry about how to keep their organizations operational and, at the same time, protect employees.
The workplace may be affected by staff absenteeism, reduced productivity, shortages of supplies, decreased number of customers, etc. Therefore, employers may be tempted to treat the health and safety of the workforce as less critical than financial profit.
Such employers forget that accidents and ill health are costly because they are not sufficiently motivated or enlightened.
One of the reasons infectious diseases spread so quickly at the workplace is due to a lack of management’s commitment to the health and safety of the workforce.
Some organizations have a poor safety culture; often, most employees go to work even though they may feel sick, not realizing they are contagious. Such employees don’t believe they will spread germs in the workplace.
Thankfully, governments and regulatory bodies have enacted strict health and safety legislation. These health and safety recommendations and standards are imposed on employers and employees for the safety of the workforce. For instance;
1. The Health and Safety at Work Act (HSWA Section 2) states that:
” It shall be the duty of every employer to ensure, so far as reasonably practicable, the health, safety, and welfare of all (their) employees Click To Tweet.”
2. The ILO, Occupational Safety and Health Convention of 1981 states that;
- “Employers shall be required to ensure that, so far as is reasonably practicable, the workplaces, machinery, equipment, and processes under their control are safe and without health risk.”
- “Employers shall be required to ensure that, so far as is reasonably practicable, the chemical, physical and biological substances and agents under their control are without health risk when the appropriate measures of protection are taken.“
- “Employers shall be required to provide, where necessary, adequate protective clothing and protective equipment to prevent, so far as is reasonably practicable, risk of accidents or adverse effects on health (C155, Art.16).”
- “Workers and their representatives should cooperate with the employer in the field of OSH (C.155, Art.19). This should include taking reasonable care for their safety and that of other persons who may be affected by their acts and omissions at work.”
3. The General Duty Clause Section 5(a)(1) of the OSH Act of 1970, 29USC 654(a)(1), which requires employers to furnish to each worker “employment and a place of employment, which are free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm.”
Section 11(c) of the OSH Act of 1970, 29USC 660(c),
“prohibits employers from retaliating against workers for raising concerns about safety and health conditions.”
OSHA’s Bloodborne Pathogens Standard (29CFR 1910.1030) applies to occupational exposure to human blood and other potentially infectious materials that typically do not include respiratory secretions that may contain SARS-CoV-2 (unless visible blood is present). However, the provisions of the standard offer a framework that may help control some sources of the virus, including exposures to body fluids(e.g., respiratory secretions) not covered by the standard.
This year’s World Day for Safety and Health at Work focused on addressing the outbreak of infectious diseases at the workplace, focusing on COVID- 19 Pandemic.
How can we protect our employees from Coronavirus?
First, we need to understand what covid-19 is and how it is transmitted.
In January 2020, the World Health Organisation(WHO) declared the outbreak of a new coronavirus disease in Hubei Province, China, a Public Health Emergency of International concern.
Two months later, on 11th March 2020, the WHO declared the coronavirus COVID-19 outbreak a pandemic.
What is Coronavirus?
Coronaviruses are a large family of viruses common in animals and may cause illnesses in animals or humans. Occasionally, people get infected with these viruses, which may then spread to others. In humans, several coronaviruses cause respiratory infections ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases such as Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). The most recently discovered coronavirus causes coronavirus disease COVID-19 ( WHO, 2020d).
What is COVID-19?
Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is an infectious disease caused by a newly discovered coronavirus known as the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 ( SARS- CoV- 2). The first human cases of COVID-19 were identified in Wuhan City, China, in December 2019 (WHO, 2020d).
How does COVID-19 spread?
When someone with COVID-19 coughs or exhales, they release droplets of infected fluid. If people are standing within one meter of a person with COVID-19, they can get infected by breathing in droplets coughed out. In addition, most of these droplets fall on nearby surfaces and objects such as desks, tables, or telephones. People can get infected by touching contaminated surfaces or things and then touching their eyes, nose, or mouth (WHO, 2020h).
What are the symptoms of COVID-19?
The most common symptoms of COVID-19 are fever, tiredness, and dry cough. In addition, some patients may have aches and pains, nasal congestion, runny nose, sore throat, or diarrhea. These symptoms are usually mild and begin gradually. Some people become infected but do not feel unwell. However, according to current knowledge, around 1 in 6 cases of COVID-19 result in severe illness and the development of breathing difficulties (WHO, 2020d).
Workers with increased risk include;
- Healthcare workers (e.g., doctors, nurses, dentists, laboratory personnel, paramedics, etc.)
- Emergency response (e.g., military, police, firefighters, road marshals, civil defense, emergency transportation team, etc.)
- Postmortem care
- Airline operations
- Retail operations
- Correctional facility operations
- In-home repair services
Ensuring Worker Safety and Health
High-risk jobs need extra protection to keep workers safe. To take appropriate measures to protect workers – so far as is reasonably practicable- from occupational risks of contagion to infectious disease, employers should adopt infection control strategies based on a thorough hazard assessment which should be after periodic reviews, using appropriate combinations of engineering and administrative controls, safe work practices, and PPE to prevent worker exposures.
Therefore, if your organization doesn’t have a staff with the correct level of expertise, hire a competent person.
NOTE: {Generally, occupational risk is the combination of the probability of an occurrence of a hazardous event and the severity of damage to the health of people caused by this event (ILO, 2001)}.
Here are some best practices that can help workers stay healthy:
Following good rules can help workers stay healthy regardless of specific exposure risks. For instance;
Provide COVID-19 testing to determine if the SARS-CoV-2 Virus is present
- Provide health surveillance
Training and Communication
- Train management, workers, and their representatives on measures to prevent the risk of exposure to the virus and how to act in case of COVID-19 infection.
- Inform workers about their rights to remove themselves from a work structure that poses a severe danger to life or health by laid out procedures.
- Train on the correct use, maintenance, and disposal of PPE.
- Maintain regular communication with workers to provide updates on situations in the workplace, region, or country.
Hygiene
- Promote a culture of handwashing to prevent the spread of infection (regular hand washing is essential for your safety and health).
- Provide a place to wash hands and alcohol-based hand rubs containing at least 60% alcohol.
- Promote good respiratory etiquette ( cover your mouth and nose with your elbow or tissue when you sneeze or cough, then trash the tissue immediately).
- Clean the surfaces of desks, workstations, doorknobs, telephones, keyboards, and working objects regularly with disinfectant.
Physical distance
- Organize work in a way that allows for physical distancing between people.
- Encourage workers who are sick to stay home.
- Maintain social distancing inside the workplace (no more hugs and handshakes).
- Use phone calls, emails, or virtual meetings rather than face-to-face meetings when feasible.
- Increase the distance between workspaces and create barriers between people if possible (e.g., a worker-worker or patient-to-patient).
- Establish flexible leave policies, work hours, and staggered shifts.
Use of appropriate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)
- Provide adequate and recommended PPE at no cost and closed bins for hygienically disposing of such materials.
Finally…
Response
In line with the guidance of local authorities, encouraging workers with the symptoms of COVID-19 to not come to the workplace and expanding access to paid sick leave, sickness benefits, and parent/care leave, and arranging for isolation of any person who develops COVID-19 symptoms at the work site, while awaiting transfer to an appropriate health facility, adequately disinfecting the work site; providing health surveillance of persons who have been in close with the infected worker (ILO, 2020i).
BE COMPLIANT with SAFETY REGULATIONS and STAY SAFE.
