Canadian HR Reporter

www.hrreporter.com 19 Ryan Wozniak is the senior vice president of legal and operations at HR and health and safety consultancy Peninsula in Toronto. For more information, call (833) 247-3652 or visit www.peninsulagrouplimited.com/ca. communication to help employees effectively transition to complying with new workplace expectations. Take note of changes to legislation: New leaves of absence have been added to provincial employment standards legislation across Canada. COVID-19 leave is meant to protect public health by allowing workers to take job-protected time off work for reasons related to the virus. Employees may use this leave if they are experiencing symptoms related to the virus themselves or have come in contact with others experiencing symptoms. Additionally, workers may use this leave to take care of sick family members or children and other dependants who are home due to school closures or other care facility closures. Employers cannot ask for medical notes from employees in relation to COVID-19 but may ask for other reasonable proof. Pra c t i se so c i a l d i st a n c i n g : Returning workers will be affected by COVID-19 for months to come. When recalling workers, employers s h o u l d r e v i e w t h e i r w o r k p l a c e capacity and staff up to their usual number of employees in phases to allow for distancing in line with government recommendations. For offices, this might mean recalling the most essential employees first and spreading them out across the entire space while the remaining employees work from home. For businesses serving clients or customers, operating during COVID- 19 should involve physical distancing measures such as posting distancing markers and limiting how many individuals can be in the space at one time. Workstations for customer-facing employees can be separated from the public with transparent glass or plastic barriers and should follow physical distancing guidelines. Rev i e w hyg i e n e p ra c t i c es : Following correct hygiene procedures is essential to preventing the spread of viruses. Employers should review the appropriate hygiene procedures for their industry with workers and post reminder notices throughout the workplace, including a notice on correct hand-washing procedures. Workers should be reminded of what they can do to protect each other, such as sneezing and coughing into the crooks of their elbow or into tissues and disposing of them immediately. Workplaces should be sanitized daily, with more frequent cleaning of communal spaces such as the kitchen and washrooms and frequently touched surfaces such as countertops, door handles and printers. Employees can be provided with PPE such as masks and gloves when w o r k i n g . A d d i t i o n a l l y, h y g i e n e products such as soap, hand sanitizer, d i s i n f e c t a n t w i p e s , t i s s u e s a n d disposal containers should be made available and kept in stock throughout the workplace. Provide training: To support staff and keep them protected, employers should provide training on how to correctly use PPE and new work procedures that will help minimize their risk of people contracting the virus. Rather than having meetings, training can be conducted virtually, where possible, with copies of updated policies for employees to keep for reference. Management should be trained on how to address employee health and safety concerns related to COVID-19. As with any occupational hazard and in cases where employees refuse work, employers must investigate and mitigate hazards that might affect employees. Employers should inform management and supervisors on how to deal with workplace hazards in line with updated company policies on COVID-19. CHRR

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