COVER STORY
temperature above 100.4 degrees warrants sending the employee home for the day,” says Evans. “If the tem- perature is above normal but below 100.4 degrees, then the guideline is to wait 15 minutes and take the tem- perature again to see if it goes up above 100.4.” Advisories are also available from local and state authori- ties at various levels of detail. “Temperature checks may be more important in hot spots than else- where,” says Evans. Health procedures of any kind can
pose legal issues. “Taking tempera- tures as people come into the work- place starts to raise wage and hour questions if people must stand in line,” says Gregg. “Employers need to ask, ‘How many minutes are workers stand- ing?’ And ‘Should they be paid for those minutes?’” Privacy issues may also arise.
“What do you do if a person has a fever?” poses Gregg. “How do you respond in a way that does not single them out? You don’t want a gong to go off or to let others see you shuttle them to a holding pen. You want to handle things in a way that does not violate privacy.” If doorway health inspections help
boost morale, employers should real- ize they are not sure things. “An indi- vidual can be infected with COVID-19 without having a fever,” says Evans. “However, the medical community still seems to think of temperature checks as important tools for ensuring work- place safety.”
Gradual Returns No safety plan can succeed if too many people crowd into the office, placing themselves and others at risk. Many businesses are moderating the flow of arrivals by bringing back people in stages, even going so far as to require eager volunteers to obtain clearance from their supervisors before returning. Others are separat- ing their staffs into two or more teams and allowing one group in the office at a time.
FIRST QUARTER 2023 Self-Storage NOW! 9 “Employers should consider the
feasibility of staggering employees’ shift times or of establishing an alter- nating workday or workweek sched- ule,” says Sholinsky. “They should be flexible and creative in developing poli- cies that maximize productivity and ensure the highest levels of safety.” If some employees are too eager
to return, others will be fearful of doing so too quickly. Allowing those individuals to continue to work remotely may help obviate safety risks. “If your business is set up for some employees to work from home, then consider allowing them to con- tinue to do so,” says Hagaman. “Give special thought to parents of school- aged children in states where schools have shut down for the remainder of the year. Remote working capabilities can also protect employees who take public transportation to work by limit- ing their exposure.”
Avoiding Discrimination Employers need to avoid intentional or nonintentional discrimination in the pool of people returning to work. “When everyone is not recalled, some people are laid off,” says Gregg. “The demographics of the exceptions should be worked through.” There should be no pattern by age, disability, race, or gender. Particular care should be taken if
someone in a managerial role is over- heard saying the pandemic has cre- ated a golden opportunity to not bring back a “difficult” employee. “You have to take a step back and figure out why the employee is labeled difficult,” says Gregg. “Is it because of poor perfor- mance or because they have spoken up on protected matters concerning safety or employment?” The law explicitly prohibits adverse
actions against anyone who has taken time off as a direct result of the
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