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Cut sickness costs:
Ways to cut time, dollar losses
due to infectious diseases
attacking your employees
Influenza and colds account for millions of days and millions of dollars lost from work each year.
Workplaces are breeding grounds for the nasty little bugs that cause colds and flu. People are confined to an enclosed area, in close proximity, for long periods of time and are sharing common articles used in their work. All employees coming to the worksite bring with them bugs that they've been exposed to outside the worksite. Employees with children in daycare and/or school are exposed to all of the bugs that their children bring home with them.
Is it any wonder that absenteeism caused by colds and flu increases dramatically during the school season?
When an employee calls in sick with cold or flu symptoms you can lose up to $500 per day in lost productivity, replacement and related expenses. But if that employee comes to work and infects others in the workplace your losses will multiply by the number of persons who eventually become ill.
How can you decrease the number of days and dollars lost in your workplace?
The period of time when colds and flu are most easily transmitted is before a person's symptoms are full-blown. Economically you are probably better off to encourage you employees to stay home for 24 to 48 hours when they first begin to experience cold or flu symptoms. This may prevent a worksite epidemic from starting.
You can cut your dollar losses due to colds and flu cycles by providing your employees with information on how each of them has a responsibility to themselves and to their fellow workers to prevent transmission of infectious diseases.
- Provide them with information by holding classes. Give each employee a handout after going over the information orally. (For a handout, copy the poster.)
- Place posters in areas of the workplace where people gather. (See poster.)
- Place the poster in all restrooms.
- Make sure that all restrooms have hot water, soap and paper towels.
- Provide materials for people to clean such commonly used items as keyboards, phones, and doorknobs. Provide instructions for doing so. (70% alcohol is recommended as an effective agent to clean hard surfaces.)
- Consider offering paid flu vaccinations to employees who can safely take the vaccine. (Some people may not be able to take the vaccine because of allergies, compromised immune systems or other medical reasons. They should check with their health care provider in advance to make sure there is no reason that they should not take the vaccine. Contact your Public Health nurses or your nearest hospital to see if they will come to your worksite to give the vaccinations.)
- Stress to employees the importance of getting sufficient rest and sleep during the cold/flu season. Your employees who come to work tired are more susceptible to contract disease.
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