The 10 Commandments of Returning to Work After Covid.
Recent surveys and client calls indicate that a majority of employers soon will be returning to work in their offices, plants and factories, if they have not done so already.
The legal and health issues can be overwhelming. Therefore, following in the footsteps of one of the original lawgivers, we thought it might be helpful to break down the main considerations into ten1 important guidelines:
1. The 10 Commandments of Returning to Work After Covid. for employees, as the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission recently noted. Whether that is a good decision for your workplace is a more nuanced question and requires further consideration. Many healthcare providers, including the University of Pennsylvania Health System and many of our healthcare clients, already have decided it is the right thing to do to protect their patients and employees.
2. If an employee refuses to get vaccinated, don’t ask why. Many of the potential answers (such as health issues and religious beliefs) can be fraught with risk.
3. If employees do raise religious or disability-related objections to getting vaccinated, employers have a duty to try to accommodate them. Proceed with caution. Accommodations may include allowing employees to work from home, to wear a mask at work, or otherwise to change working conditions to ensure the workplace is safe.
4. If the employer plans to mandate or check vaccination status, consider how that will be done. There are three basic options: (1) the honor system (trust the employee’s verbal answer); (2) having a Human Resources-type employee check but not copy the CDC proof of vaccination for each employee; or (3) check and copy the CDC proof of vaccination for each employee. In all circumstances the information provided (whether oral or written) is confidential and must be kept confidential, as with other employee health information.
5. Consider masking and social distancing requirements for the unvaccinated, asrecommended by OSHA and the CDC, to protect the health and safety of visitors, co-workers and others.
6. Consider how mandating vaccinations may affect your workforce, including employee morale and potential employee resignations for those who refuse to return to work if vaccination is required – and conversely, the objections of those who may refuse to return to work if all are not vaccinated. Try to be flexible and empathetic.
7. Review state laws – a handful of states now prohibit employers from asking employees if they have been vaccinated or mandating vaccinations for employees.
8. Consider what structural, personal and policy safety measures might be needed to protect the health and safety of employees and visitors, if this is the first time you are returning to the workplace at full force or close to it. OSHA has industry-specific recommendations and 11 specific interventions to protect the health of workers.
9. Consider offering employees an incentive or bonus to get vaccinated. Depending on the type of incentive offered, there may be tax consequences.
10. If an “at-risk” employee self-identifies, take appropriate precautions and steps to protect that employee from infection. OSHA and the CDC have helpful guidance.
None of this is easy, but we hope this provides a good starting point for decisions. We stand ready to assist and advise, as needed.