An employer's guide to swine flu

9 July 2009

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With the number of confirmed swine flu cases reaching 7,500 in the UK and health bosses expecting 100,000 new cases to be diagnosed every day by the end of August, we have produced the following information and advice to help your business prepare for an outbreak.

What is swine flu?

Swine flu is a disease of a respiratory nature caused by a strain of the influenza type A virus H1N1. This is the same strain which causes seasonal outbreaks in humans. However, the strain of H1N1 commonly known as ‘swine flu' contains genetic material normally found within in strains that affect humans, birds and swine. Although the strain originated from pigs, it is now wholly a human disease.

Swine flu symptoms include fever, cough, sore throat, aches, feeling cold and fatigue. Therefore these could be confused as symptoms of what would be known as seasonal or common flu.

Swine flu can be spread from person to person by coughing or sneezing.

Tips for employers

As an employer, you should make sure that you are prepared for an outbreak of swine flu. The following areas should be taken into consideration:

Have a contingency plan in place. This could be part of a comprehensive disaster recovery plan to protect your organisation. In compiling such a plan, you should consider setting up a team of senior and vital staff members in order to steer the organisation through such a difficult time.
During a pandemic it is likely that the workforce will be depleted. Therefore, it is recommended that staff are trained to cover several positions, so that they can multi-task if there is a staff shortage.
Be aware of the need to recruit temporary staff in order to fill any shortfall within the workforce. Key roles should be established, and members of staff, who have a wide range of skills and can undertake several roles, should be identified.
Advise any member of staff who is sick with swine flu (suspected or confirmed) to stay at home.
Investigate ways to limiting the amount of face-to-face contact between individuals by utilising video links, teleconferencing and other technologies.
Use electronic communication methods such as email, telephone and internet social networking sites such as Facebook or Twitter if company systems are not working.
Follow advice from the Health and Safety Executive and Department of Health.
If you work in a service or customer-facing industry, investigate how online transactions could be used to minimise face-to-face contact with the public.
Consider postponing any training courses, unnecessary travel or work-related events.
Consider flexible working arrangements. Schools may be closed, sick relatives may need caring for, and public transport services may be disrupted.
Advise any employees who are unwell with flu-like symptoms to seek medical assistance at the earliest opportunity. If they have symptoms they should stay away from the workplace. The National Flu Pandemic Flu Service is due to go live in mid-July to take the pressure off GP surgeries and hospitals. However, employees should contact their GP at the current time.
Employees may refuse to come to work in order to avoid contracting swine flu. The legal position on this is that an employee is not permitted to refuse to attend work on the premise of fear alone. This could then result in formal disciplinary action being taken if their reason is unfounded. If in doubt, you should obtain legal advice.
Redundancies may be unavoidable during an outbreak through circumstances outside of your control. However, a full redundancy procedure in line with legislation should be followed, even in an outbreak of pandemic proportions.
Provide employees with information regarding workplace hygiene. Advise employees to carry tissues, cover the mouth and nose if they sneeze, bin any tissues immediately after use and wash their hands with soap/hot water or a sanitizer gel on a regular basis.
Door handles and taps are common areas where disease may be lurking. Clean these areas with antiseptic wipes to keep them germ free.

Members of the FPB can contact our member helpline on 0845 130 1722 for further guidance and support.

Alternatively, you can stay informed of the latest developments and advice at the following websites:

Department of Health

Health and Safety Executive
Health Protection Agency

This advice was produced with the help of our partners at Qdos Consulting Ltd, who provide our 24-hour legal helpline and legal expenses insurance package.

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