COVID-19 Coronavirus Policy

This policy applies to all persons working for us or on our behalf in any capacity, including employees at all levels, directors, managers, agency workers, seconded workers, volunteers, contractors and suppliers.
Associated Calibration and Training Ltd adopts the advice of the government (Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and Public Health England) as well as the NHS. The companies policy on the prevention, planning and reponse on COVID-19 is detailed as below;

• Employees who have symptoms of acute respiratory illness are recommended to stay home and not come to work until they are free of fever (100.4° F [37.8° C] or greater using an oral thermometer), signs of a fever, and any other symptoms for at least 24 hours, without the use of fever-reducing or other symptom-altering medicines (e.g. cough suppressants). Employees should notify the director and stay home if they are sick.
• ACT’s sick leave policies are consistent with public health guidance and that employees are aware of these policies.
• ACT shall maintain flexible policies that permit employees to stay at home to care for a sick family member. Employers should be aware that more employees may need to stay at home to care for sick children or other sick family members than is usual.
• Employees who appear to have acute respiratory illness symptoms (i.e. cough, shortness of breath) upon arrival to work or become sick during the day should be separated from other employees and be sent home immediately. Sick employees should cover their noses and mouths with a tissue when coughing or sneezing (or an elbow or shoulder if no tissue is available).
• Posters informing staff that they are  encouraged to stay at home when sick, cough and sneeze etiquette and hand hygiene have been placed at the entrance to the office and in other workplace areas where they are likely to be seen.
• The company has provided tissues and no-touch disposal receptacles for use by employees.
• Staff are instructed to clean their hands often with an alcohol-based hand sanitizer, or wash their hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. Soap and water should be used preferentially if hands are visibly dirty.
• The company provides soap and water and will ensure that adequate supplies are maintained. 
• All frequently touched surfaces in the workplace are cleaned routinely, such as workstations, countertops, desks and doorknobs. 
• Disposable wipes are provided so that commonly used surfaces (for example, doorknobs, keyboards, remote controls, desks) can be wiped down by employees before each use.
• Employees are advised to check themselves for symptoms of acute respiratory illness before starting travel and notify the director and stay home if they are sick.
• Ensure employees who become sick while travelling or on temporary assignment understand that they should notify the director and should promptly call NHS 111 for advice if needed.
• Employees who are well but who have a sick family member at home with COVID-19 should notify the director and seek further advice on their potential exposure.
• If an employee is confirmed to have COVID-19, ACT will inform fellow employees of their possible exposure to COVID-19 in the workplace but maintain confidentiality.

Illness – The severity of illness or how many people will fall ill from COVID-19 is unknown at this time. ACT will respond in a flexible way to varying levels of severity and be prepared to refine their business response plans as needed. The immediate health risk from COVID-19 is considered low as the majority of our work activities take place within our own controlled work environment where it is unlikely that work tasks create an increased risk of exposure to COVID-19. The company will continue to monitor national and international data on the severity of illness caused by COVID-19 and will implement additional recommendations as needed. Amongst the main considerations are:

• Disease severity (i.e., number of people who are sick, hospitalisation and death rates) in the community where the business is located;
• Employees that may be at higher risk of  severe illness, such as older adults and those with chronic medical conditions will be informed.
• The company is prepared for possible increased numbers of employee absences due to illness, family members being ill, and high levels of absenteeism for staff attending to children in the case of school closures:
• The company will implement plans to continue the  essential business functions if we experience higher than usual absenteeism.
• Staff will be trained  to perform essential functions so that the workplace is able to operate even if key staff members are absent.
• We will assess our essential functions and the reliance that others have on our services or products. We are prepared to change our business practices if needed to maintain critical operations and where necessary prioritise customers depending the critical nature of their requirements (e.g. hopsitals)
• We will coordinate with local health officials for guidance and respond appropriately since the intensity of an outbreak may differ according to geographic locations, local health officials will be issuing guidance specific to our local community.

Exposure – If staff are tasked with working at customer’s sites, the company will assess any risk that may be presented to our employees working at other locations. ACT will ask for a copy of the customers COVID-19 policy and assess any risks before travelling to customers sites. ACT will only ask staff to attend customers sites if there is no or a very low risk of exposure to COVID19

Supply of Goods  – ACT maintain good stock levels of products and have recently put measures into place to ensure we can meet the demands for our customers during this period. As we have many supply chains both domestically and internationally our exposure to delays in supplying goods is low.   

As a responsible employer we are ready to implement strategies to protect our workforce from COVID-19 while ensuring continuity of operations. During a COVID-19 outbreak we will respond in the following way: .

• All sick employees will be required to stay at home.
• Respiratory etiquette and hand hygiene will be enforced.
• Routine cleaning of commonly touched surfaces will be performed regularly.
• Potential work-related exposure and health risks to staff will be investigated. 
• Policies and practices will be reviewed to ensure they are consistant with public health recommendations and workplace laws.
• We will explore whether alternative working practices, such as working from home (e.g. conference calling) and flexible work hours (e.g., staggered shifts), to increase the physical distance between employees and reduce potential exposure.
• Essential business functions will be identified, essential jobs or roles, and critical elements within our supply chains (e.g. suppliers, subcontractor services/products, and logistics) required to maintain business operations. We have plans in place which will allow us to  operate if there is increasing absenteeism or the supply chain is interrupted.
• The company will monitor closeley how other areas are affected by COVID-19 outbreaks and if necessary will suspend its services in severely affected areas.
• ACT will communicate information to employees and business partners on infectious disease outbreak response plans and latest COVID-19 information. We will anticipate  employee fear, anxiety, rumors, and misinformation, and plan communications accordingly.
• Local conditions will influence the decisions that public health officials make regarding community-level strategies; ACT will take the time now to learn about plans in place in each community where they have a business interest.
• Travel restrictions may be enacted by other countries which may limit the ability of employees to return home if they become sick while overseas.
• Large work-related meetings or events will cancelled to reduce the risk of exposure.