Flu pandemic

The necessary individual and collective measures taken by employers to ensure the safety and protect the health of employees in a pandemic situation will be developed from the results of an assessment of the risks identified in the work place.

Four main types of situation

While each situation is specific, four main types of situation can still be identified, two of which have particularly high risks (the last two listed below):
 Employees work remotely (at home for instance) and are not therefore exposed to varied and numerous human contacts due to the nature of their job. In this case, employers need take no measures to protect their employees. Employees must refer to the instructions given by health authorities which are valid for the general population.
 Employees are present in their normal place of work (excluding private homes) and are exposed to a general environmental risk, notably due to contact with their colleagues within the company, although the risk is not increased by a specific work organisation (situation which will, in principle, be more common). The basic hygiene and health instructions intended for the general population are applicable to companies but will be enforced more strictly, based on an up-to-date risk assessment.
 For employees whose jobs mean they are regularly exposed to close contact with the public (jobs on tills and counters for example), the risk of the pandemic influenza virus being transmitted is higher because of the inherent over-exposure to environmental risk factors in the workplace. In this particular context, employers are strongly recommended to provide and enforce the use of personal protective equipment and set up appropriate stepped up hygiene measures.
 In situations where employees are directly exposed to an even higher risk of the flu virus’s transmission because of the very nature of their normal job, the regulations specific to biological risks become applicable, only more vigilantly due to the influenza pandemic.

Individual measures

Employee hand hygiene (hand washing) and respiratory hygiene (simple gestures made when coughing or sneezing) must be stringently enforced. Employers must therefore inform and train employees on the health and safety measures to be implemented and on how to wear personal protective equipment (particularly masks) to ensure they are used properly. They will also need to make essential hygiene facilities available to employees such as water, liquid soap, single-use wipes, bin bags, etc. Employers should therefore have a sufficient stock of these products.

Collective measures

These comprise of collective hygiene and organisational measures.

Communal areas in the workplace should be maintained and cleaned meticulously every day: communal areas (stair banisters, door handles, switches, etc.), sanitary facilities (toilets and sinks, etc.), work surfaces and equipment (desks, computers, machine levers, etc.). Employers should check that these measures are applied correctly and effectively.

Work organisation measures such as:
 Measures aimed at slowing down contagion (instructions to staff and visitors, management of people and entries, etc.). The employer will ensure employees limit close contact as much as possible and keep a distance of two metres between people.
 Work time adjustment measures
 Possibilities of working remotely – case of telecommuting