‘The new normal’ is a phrase business experts use to describe a post COVID-19 world: The way we do and interact with businesses will never be the same again and adapting to the new ways of operating will be vital.

One aspect of the business that will be in the spotlight is health and safety – an area often neglected until you need it, but something that will become more vital than ever in a business’ policies and procedures.

We asked Chamber member Go4health Workplace Wellness a number of questions around what H&S in a post COVID-19 world could look like, and to provide some thoughts around some areas of H&S many businesses may not have considered until now (i.e. contact tracing, social distancing).

In your opinion, how will COVID-19 affect the current H&S regulations in NZ – both short and long term?

All ‘normal’ business practices will be disrupted some more significantly than others.

However, whether a COVID-19 pandemic or a flu pandemic, both short and long term, all employers have a legal obligation to keep their workers healthy and safe. It is critical that employers keep their health and safety obligations at the top of their agendas.

A guiding principle of H&S regulations in NZ is that workers and other persons should be given the highest level of protection against harm to their health, safety, and welfare from work risks so far as is reasonably practicable.

Post COVID-19, business structures, practices, operations, administration and systems will see significant work changes being made – becoming ‘the new norm’ of business, particularly after many employees have had to work remotely from home during lockdown. Health and safety principles will remain the same in this respect.

Short-term:

• Social distancing
• Medical PPE protection (for front-line health workers) will continue until COVID-19 has been eradicated (under current H&S regulations).

Long-term:

• Raising awareness of the importance of having up-to-date policies re H & S
• Pandemic planning in the workplace, including adapting to situations such as lockdown and how to support employees especially around mental health.
• A COVID-19 Pandemic Plan will be mandatory for all businesses, perhaps a FLU Pandemic Plan will also become mandatory.

 What are some key adjustments do you think workplaces will have to make in order to keep their staff safe and healthy in a post COVID-19 world?

• Revisiting/introducing key steps to promote safety for staff and the workplace, including on-hand PPE gear and providing regular education especially usage, and key members of the team are encouraged to support employees to access and use PPE.
• Policies that support staff wellness, including regular / mandatory health maintenance checks, EAP in-services, financial education for future pandemic situations.
• Working remotely / from home may become the ‘new normal’ for some businesses, so employees must have the tools and equipment to support this, ensuring that a plan is in place through work polices that support pandemic/future widespread disruption to work places so that employees can smoothly transition in to different roles/places.

From a Go4health clinical perspective, it is wise for workplaces to provide annual health checks and other workplace health and safety wellness checks for employees, in order to provide a benchmark for the company to measure their staff health, wellness and safety.

When it comes to contact tracing, how viable do you think this is for most businesses? What would be some ways they might be able to trace people who have come through their business?

Once businesses step out of lockdown, this will be a Government directive. Until we all have clear Government guidelines, businesses are in unchartered waters.

Theoretically, businesses will need to balance why are they contact tracing and how far do they go tracing people who have come through their business i.e. their customers, suppliers, contractors, delivery agents, and visitors and their employees. Also, do they have the capacity or the resources (including financial resources) to contact trace?

This step calls for practical, reasonable and sensible rethinking and planning as not to be a ‘police state’ yet, while at the same time ensuring they are protecting their employees, otherwise they will lose customers, sales, suppliers and their business will fail.

For employees: the last thing we want to do discriminate against someone, however, at the same time, we want to ensure employees and future employees are aware and well supported when it comes to tracing their pathways. This , again, needs to be logistically managed. Businesses having robust systems in place will minimise this concern.

WorkSafe NZ currently provide helpful information and resources re COVID-19 on their website. No doubt valuable post COVID-19 information and resources will be available to all of us as we move out of Level 4 lockdown.

Same question again, but for social distancing? How will this work for businesses?

Again, until we all have clear guidelines businesses are in unchartered waters?

What defines social distancing in a post lockdown business world? Does this mean we all have to work 2m apart, no shaking hands when we greet our clients, only two people at a time may sit in the lunchroom, staff room etc, etc?

Our thoughts are that viability / sustainability will be two key considerations. Some essential businesses who have already worked with ‘distancing’ (depending on the nature of their business) may prefer to continue distancing practices after considering their business viability and their ability to sustain the practice.  However, what will be more vital here is providing employees with the resources, equipment, and access to facilities, and to promote hygiene/handwashing etiquette.

For all those non-essential businesses to step out of lockdown and be required to adopt social distancing in all aspects of their business practices/activities, some may struggle to adapt or adopt, and for them it may not be viable or sustainable… especially small businesses; what are the financial costs associated with this?

*FYI: Since the Go4health team answered these questions, the Government have indicated that under Level 3, “Workplaces must operate safely – keeping one metre between workers, recording who is working together, limiting interaction between groups of workers, disinfecting surfaces, and maintaining high hygiene standards”.

What is some advice for businesses looking to get their staff vaccinated?

The most important advice for businesses and to their employees is to read/analyse the facts around vaccination. Ring our team of nurses and talk with us, or better still we are happy to come in and give a brief in-service on this (once lockdown permits us to do so), but please ensure whatever decision you make is based on the right information and not to scare monger.

As a team, our motto is ‘in and out with minimal disruption to the workplace’.  We are efficient, follow up with different staff, and provide after care if required.

Going forwards, we anticipate an unprecedented uptake for COVID-19 vaccinations once a vaccine is available.  Dependent upon the Ministry of Health directive Go4health should have the approval to administer.  Our Go4health Nurses are certified and have the authority of the Medical Officer of Health to vaccinate Flu and Hepatitis A & B Vaccines.

Anything else you’d like to add about health and workplace safety for businesses in light of the impact COVID-19 is having?

Please don’t get complacent regarding this COVID-19 virus.  If businesses can provide vaccination support to their employees in the future, then offer this to protect them.

Finally, mental health and financial support are the other two areas that businesses can provide support to their employees; through changing their policies and practices and offering resources to support them.  Ensuring these are documented in their Health and Safety policies.

My father in law always said, “Always look after good staff, without them you are nobody” and he had 250 staff.

Go4health Workplace Wellness (Go4health) comments and opinions to this Q&A are based on our business practices, systems, policies and principles, and from a clinical aspect.

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