News

Having hopefully reached the peak of the COVID-19 outbreak and transmission, and potentially beginning to see a drop in cases and deaths due to the virus, thoughts are now turning towards how to return to work, safely.

We need to work together and subsequently the following are key areas which employers need to be including within their assessments around returning to work.

All employers and their employees will face different circumstances, so some of these may not apply to everyone. However, this is a new area for all facilities managers, property managers and health and safety professionals. Therefore this list will change over time. Your systems and controls will be affected, so you should consider where these may be relaxed or achieved differently, and where they must not be compromised.

General background and issues

• Government advice will not change until there is a flattening of the curve and a more definite downward trajectory of COVID-19 cases and deaths.
• More extensive testing is required, identifying those who currently have the infection and those who have been affected and may have some immunity.
• If new cases increase, then social distancing measures need to be more stringent, or repeated if there is a second or third spike.
• Employers will need to consider the data they hold for their employees, both in terms of past history of illness as well as any current illnesses.
• The working (as well as social) environment is going to change and there will be a ‘new normal' that needs to be adopted.
• Employers will need to set out expectations and companywide goals to employees.
• Risk assessments may be required for particular employee health issues. This is critical if the employee is expected to return to the workplace.
• Different personality types may need additional support. For example:
  • Motivation of those who need to return to the workplace but have got used to working from home (and the possible decreased workload whilst matters have been on hold).
  • Those who are returning to the workplace following mental or physical health issues (loss of a family member/close friend or recovering from infection themselves).
  • Returning to work completely following furlough.
  • Implications of recognising that some people may decide not to return to work or take a career path change.
• Employers should communicate any proposed changes (albeit with a caveat that things will develop and change as you experience how employees and the premises react) before return to reduce anxiety, establishing and agreeing protocols before or on return to ensure safe practices. Employees will benefit from having some understanding of what the first day will look like, and what to expect.
• Engagement with all employees to provide feedback and work together with employers to identify any issues, shortfalls or benefits connected with returning to the workplace.

Transmission and overall risk - considerations

• The virus is spread primarily from person to person through small droplets from the nose or mouth, which are expelled when a person with COVID-19 coughs, sneezes, or speaks - how can we reduce the risk of contact with these droplets?
• Are there any higher risk personnel that are in greater jeopardy? Consider gender, age and any existing underlying health conditions.
  • Public Health England (PHE) guidance has identified two groups of people with increased vulnerability:
  • Those defined on medical grounds as ‘extremely vulnerable from COVID-19'.
• Those defined as ‘at increased risk of severe illness from COVID-19'. These include those aged 70 or older (regardless of medical conditions), those with identified conditions listed in PHE's guidance and pregnant women up to 28 weeks.
• These people are advised to be particularly stringent in following social distancing measures and will be critical when it comes to employers planning when to re-open the workplace.
• Can you extend and maintain homeworking for some roles that are not critical to in the office to result in a phased return of workers?

Transport

• How will your employees get to work? Public transport? Driving? Walking? Cycling?
• What facilities are available to enable these commuting routes, e.g. parking spaces, secure bicycle storage, lockers, showers, etc.?

Social distancing

• We are now all used to keeping two metres apart. However, when returning to the workplace there will be a need to change our habits in the previously familiar environment.
• How will people greet each other? What works for your company may not work for others. Will there be confusion when people meet? A general policy needs to be set for all to follow.
• How will you manage meetings? Do you have enough space in your meeting rooms to accommodate all attendees whilst maintaining social distancing?
• Can you re-purpose any rooms to assist?
• Consider kitchen and refreshment points. Look at the contact points for handles, machine menus, seating, etc.
• Review how fridges and dishwashers are to be used. Should employees continue to use the fridge for non-essentials? It may be beneficial to do so to avoid them venturing outside the office for refreshments.
• A closer look at how WCs are laid out could be necessary. Are they easily accessible with reasonable space for keeping apart from others?
• Can you provide physical barriers between areas? Can you utilise unused furniture to provide a ‘one way' system if required?
• Encourage employees to email, text or call their colleagues instead of physically attending their workstations.

Passenger lifts

• Are the building's passenger lifts large enough to accommodate social distancing?
• Do you need to restrict numbers?
• Can people use the stairs instead? Are there employees who genuinely need to use the lifts and so should be given priority?
• Could you consider staggered starts/finishes?
• Could you consider rotating employee shifts in the workplace to reduce lift passenger numbers?

Staircases

• These are unlikely to be more than two metres in width so personnel need to use them in single file.
• What is the protocol when meeting someone moving in the opposite direction?

DSE/Workstations

• Consider the enhanced cleaning and use of shared workstations/agile working/hot desks in- between use.
• Can you distance your employees by splitting banks of desks or allowing gaps?
• Can you rotate shift patterns for employees to reduce the numbers of employees in the premises at any one time?

Mail/Post Services

• Good hygiene should be included for any mail or post deliveries. Any plastic or hard surfaces of incoming packaging can be wiped down with a suitable sanitising cloth or product which should be made readily available and instructions provided on best practice methods of cleaning.
• Consider doing the same for any post that you send so as out to consider recipients.

Employees

• Employers need to have realistic expectations of employee productivity on returning to work.
• Consider the mental health of all employees, working with HR to identify those who may be at higher risk of suffering (e.g. those who may have lost a family member or friend to the virus; pregnant employees, or those who have a high workload due to the restrictions that have been imposed).
• Many workers will be anxious or even depressed after being furloughed or working from home. What can you do (or do you need to do) to support them and rehabilitate them into the workplace?
• Encourage employees to stay home/work from home if they feel unwell with any symptoms, not necessarily just those associated with COVID-19.

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE)

• There has been a large amount of discussion about the use of face masks, currently not being recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO), the UK Government or their scientific and health advisers. Employees may wish to wear them for their own reassurance, but this can introduce complacency and may encourage employees to touch their face more, so this should be borne in mind.
• Standard face masks are mainly used to protect others from infection from the wearer. Therefore, it is theoretically not PPE.
• Protective gloves may be worn by employees but these do not stop the transmission of the virus onto the surfaces that are being touched, it merely stops the virus coming into contact with the skin.
• Consider how to manage the disposal of these items should employees wish to use them.

First Aid

• What action will you expect from your first aiders in the event that an employee experiences symptoms of COVID-19?
• Consider the health and protection of your first aiders when attending an event.

Fire Evacuations

• How can you manage large groups of personnel (stairs, wider assembly point or dispersal)?
• Can you evacuate different parts/floors of the building separately?

Contractors (control and management)

• Are the contractor's controls adequate whilst working on your premises to protect your employees and visitors?
• Are your controls adequate to protect the contractors?
• How will you manage more than one set of contractors onsite at any one time when they need to work in the same area?

Building Services

• Air conditioning: have you checked with your maintenance contractor how this will be maintained? Will the system require additional servicing or filter changes?
• Check with your provider for advice on air flow changes that may assist.

Cleaning

• Ensure that regularly touched surfaces (handles, push pads, switches) are cleaned more frequently/thoroughly and with a suitable sanitising cleaning solution.
• Maintain a supply of hand sanitisers around the premises, particularly at the point of entry to the property or each floor/office, as well as sanitising soap for washrooms.

Business Travel

• It is unlikely that travel between countries will be reinstated for a while yet; however you should consider internal/domestic travel arrangements within the UK. Are they necessary? If so, what is the plan to protect everyone involved?
• Use video conferencing and other virtual means in place of non-essential in-person meetings.

Business Continuity

• Have you experienced the loss of a critical person in any way?
• What processes do you have in place to ensure all services can continue?
• How will you deal with future waves of infection? How will you implement what you have learnt so far?

Useful resources

Official information posters for the workplace can be downloaded here.
Also useful is the UK Government advice for employers.

About this guidance

As mentioned, this guidance is not exhaustive and will evolve as we continue to understand and learn more about how best to protect our employees when returning to the workplace.

In the spirit of co-operation and sharing, I would welcome any feedback on areas in which you feel we should be paying particular attention and which can be added to our list.

This information has been gleaned from various sources, as well as from our internal data, but I particularly credit resources from IOSH (Institution of Occupational Safety and Health) and SOM (Society of Occupational Medicine).