There are many things to consider when getting your staff back to work in this new Covid-19 world. First and foremost, you need to ensure the safety of your workers. But this needs to be done in a way that is practical, consistent, best practice and cost-effective.
To help businesses re-open operations, the Australian Government has released a very useful online toolkit My Business’s COVIDSafe Plan. Businesses are encouraged to prepare a COVIDSafe Plan and then review it frequently to keep the workplace healthy, safe, and virus-free.
The Plan aligns with the National COVID‑19 Safe Work Principles and is designed to help businesses prepare for the different stages of the pandemic.
It references the Safe Work Australia’s checklists for implementing best practice hygiene, cleaning and social distancing.
The Plan prompts businesses to consider:
how physical and social distancing requirements change the way a business engages with customers.
can the physical setup/delivery of your service be changed so it is safe for everyone?
what elements of your business model may be difficult to maintain in this new environment?
can these difficulties be minimised (e.g. by moving online)?
can your business temporarily change or expand the range of goods and services it offers; and
identify opportunities to expand or change an element of your business to respond to an opportunity in the current environment.
Further to this, we suggest reviewing your current workplace safety measures:
· Have any of your standard workplace health and safety measures been temporarily halted due to Covid-19? If so, is it time for them to be reinstated?
· Have you communicated all of your new Covid-19 safety measures with your staff?
Just like you, we at DASA are focused on keeping our workers safe. We have implemented new protocols to ensure COVIDSafe delivery of onsite drug and alcohol testing. If you would like a copy of our protocols or want more information on drug and alcohol testing at your workplace, give us a call on 02 8001 2535 or email info@dasa.net.au.