Agenda - Council - 06/23/2020 - Laserfiche WebLink

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The City of Ramsey COVID-19 Preparedness Plan The City of Ramsey is committed to providing a safe and healthy workplace for all our employees. To ensure that, we have developed the following Preparedness Plan in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. All employees are responsible for implementing this plan. Our goal is to mitigate the potential for transmission of COVID-19 in our workplace, and that requires full cooperation among employees and management. Only through this cooperative effort can we establish and maintain the safety and health of our employees and workplaces. Our employees are our most important assets. We are serious about safety and health and keeping our employees working at the City of Ramsey. Employee involvement is essential in developing and implementing a successful COVID-19 Preparedness Plan. We have involved our employees in this process by responding to concerns raised by staff and sharing decisions with employees via email and supervisor updates. In addition, we specifically requested employees' verbal and written feedback about this plan on May 6 and May 9; 2020. Prior to this date, the City has strongly encouraged open communications between employees and management. All employee feedback is evaluated and, if feasible, integrated into this plan. Unique employee concerns are evaluated and acted upon. Employees are encouraged to continue to report any suggestions or concerns they have related to being at work and COVID-19. Our Preparedness Plan follows Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) guidelines and federal OSHA standards related to COVID-19 and addresses: • hygiene and respiratory etiquette; • engineering and administrative controls for social distancing; • housekeeping —cleaning, disinfecting and decontamination; • prompt identification and isolation of sick persons; • communications and training that will be provided to managers and employees; and • management and supervision necessary to ensure effective implementation of the plan. In an effort to minimize the transmission of COVID-19 in our workplace, it is expected that employees will follow the procedures and guidance listed below: COVID-19 Screening: Employees have been informed of and expected to self -monitor for signs and symptoms of COVID-19. Employees will be provided with a daily COVID-19 screening checklist and will be expected to complete the screening steps each day prior to leaving for work. Employees are not required to write down their results and will not submit the screening checklist to the City. However, employees are expected to return an initial signed acknowledgment form to human resources confirming agreement with the screening protocol. The daily COVID-19 screening specifically checks for COVID-19 symptoms, exposure to others with COVID-19 symptoms/illness, and exposure from travel. Attached is the health screening questionnaire employees should review each day before coming to work. • If an employee answers yes to any of the questions on the health screening, they are to notify their supervisor or department head who will then notify human resources. If the employee believes there are extenuating circumstances that would allow them to report to work (for example, the employee has already had COVID-19, recovered, and considered unable to be a carrier of the virus) human resources will assess whether the employee can report to work. Employees may qualify for Families First Act financial benefits and human resources will assist employees with applying for those benefits via email.