Swine Flu and Colorado Businesses

These wise words from Colorado's pandemic influenza planning coordinator Jacqueline Zheleznyak:

As we approach the beginning of the work week, we walk towards it with a new challenge: will the swine flu affect my business, my employees, and me? In reality, the answer is yes. The swine flu epidemic has already affected our lives. It’s on every TV station, website and newspaper.

So what do we do now? As a business owner or manager, let’s look at these steps you can take today to help protect your business, your customers, yourself and your employees.

Be Ready
· Get your plan in place: As the owner or manager, you are viewed as an example. Review your personal and family plans. As in any emergency or potential threat, be it a flood, hurricane or earthquake, make sure you have your 72-hour kit or ‘emergency kit’ stocked and ready. If you don’t have one, take this opportunity to get one started. For more information on what you may want in the kit, please go to www.ready.gov or www.readycolorado.com. Some extra items you may want to add to your kit for flu are a small amount of cold or flu medicine, tissues and non-aspirin pain reliever such as ibuprofen (Motrin, Advil) or acetaminophen (Tylenol), which also help reduce fever. Help your employees or co-workers out by bringing in your kit as an example and encourage everyone to make one of their own. One way to ensure that it is done is to give everyone an hour or so to get their supplies and make one. Everyone is busy, but allowing your employees time to prepare themselves not only helps them but shows them that you, and your business, value them as business assets and individuals.
· Continuity: If you don’t have a business continuity plan, this is the perfect opportunity to start one. For detailed information on continuity planning for large and small business, go to http://www.ready.gov/business/plan/planning.html. If you have a continuity plan, review it and update all contact and other important information. Contact your business partners to learn how their continuity plans may affect your business. Remember that continuity planning for a potential pandemic may focus more on human capital than on physical or structural issues.
· Telework: For businesses that frequently meet with clients must start thinking about how to do this virtually. You might be surprised at how many free or low-cost teleconference services exist. Search out services that will meet your needs as an organization.

Be Healthy
· Stay home if you are sick or think you are sick: If you are sick, or not feeling well, stay home. Take care of yourself. Encourage your employees to do the same. This is one of the best ways to do your part to help your community respond to any public health event. It seems small but can be invaluable to your community and business. This will also help your co-workers, employees and customers stay well.
· Leave or sick time: Your business may want to consider a change to its sick time and leave polices. Encourage your employees to stay home when sick and to use their sick time or leave they may be saving. Allow employees to donate extra leave to a leave bank that can be used by employees that may need it. If your business does not provide leave to employees, be as flexible as possible if your employees need to stay home because they are sick or caring for someone that is ill.

Be Informed
· Educate yourself: Learn about the flu and swine flu. Take the time to learn about flu and how it can be spread. Go to www.CDC.gov or www.pandemicflu.gov and read for yourself what the current situation is and how to get the latest information. To see more of what Colorado has specifically done on business planning, look at the guidelines posted at http://www.cdphe.state.co.us/epr/pandemic.html.
· Educate your employees: No matter how big or small your business may be, this will benefit everyone involved. Smaller businesses may want to hold a mandatory staff meeting where everyone is gathered and accurate information about the flu is presented. Larger businesses may decide to send an email or memo to all staff that includes basic information about the flu. Do something that will benefit your employees and your company, but don’t forget to have a way for your staff to ‘educate’ you as well. That may be an anonymous question box, or an email address to which they may direct questions. Taking time for you to understand what your employees concerns are will help you and your business navigate a successful path through this event.
· Educate your customers: No matter what type of business you have, there is a way to do this and it is important. Communicate with your customers about what your business is doing to protect customers and your staff from the flu. For example, you may want to print and have flyers or fact sheets available about the flu. Many examples can be found at www.pandemicflu.gov. Or, you may want to communicate to your customers that business hours or specific operations may be altered slightly as we learn more about the effect of swine flu on our community. Ask for patience and understanding as your business navigates its way through this challenge. In reality, no matter what the changes are, they will almost always be temporary or short-term.

All of these suggestions are general and may not work for all businesses. Do what will work for your business and your customers. For more detailed information on continuity planning and pandemic flu planning, visit the following websites:

www.pandemicflu.gov
www.ready.gov
http://www.cdphe.state.co.us/epr/pandemic.html
http://www.fema.gov/government/coop/index.shtm