Flu season is fast approaching. What can you do if your employees get sick? To prevent your entire office staff from catching the flu, you can send employees home once they begin to exhibit signs of illness. Typical symptoms include fever, chills, runny nose, cough, fatigue, and body aches. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, one becomes contagious one day before experiencing symptoms and up to five days after. Employees should stay home until they are no longer contagious or at least 24 hours after they no longer have a fever or exhibit signs of a fever. This should be determined without the use of medicine. The time off can be applied to sick time or paid time off if available or to unpaid time off if the first two options are not available.
Employers who take precautions against the spread of influenza in the workplace will have fewer absences and a healthier workforce. Before flu season is upon us you may want to consider the following:
- Designate a person or team to review the Centers for Disease Control website on a regular basis for information on preparing for the flu season.
- Encourage your employees to get the flu shot. Some employers offer incentives such as reimbursement for cost of the vaccine. Talk with your employees and find out if their health insurance plans cover the cost of vaccination.
- Educate your employees on your policies so there is no question about if the time off is covered by sick pay. Knowing they’ll be paid even when not at work is often all an employee needs in order to stay home until well.
Illnesses like the flu (influenza) and colds are caused by viruses that infect the nose, throat, and lungs. The flu and colds usually spread from person to person when an infected person coughs or sneezes. Post information to educate employees about the flu and other illnesses and remind employees how to reduce the spread of germs. Three basic rules to follow are:
- Washing your hands often either with soap and water, alcohol-based disposable hand wipes, or gel sanitizers.
- Covering your cough or sneeze with your hands, and cleaning your hands after, or with a tissue.
- Not touching your eyes, nose, or mouth.
Germs can live for a long time (some can live for 2 hours or more) on surfaces like doorknobs, desks, and tables. Following these three rules will help reduce the amount of germs. For more information visit the CDC website.
