With the spread of COVID-19, a completely new approach to the employer's health and safety obligations towards its employees is necessary. Employers must indeed be extra vigilant and take unprecedented measures to fulfill these obligations.
In such a context, beyond the organizational upheavals it implies, how can the imperative of continuing the country's economic activity and the need to protect employees be reconciled?
Below is a summary of the concrete measures that can be considered by the employer to comply with their health and safety obligation.
Updating the single document for assessing occupational risks (DUERP)
In our view, this is the first measure that must be implemented by the employer in the current health context.
As a reminder, the establishment of the DUERP is an obligation that falls on all employers, without any condition of workforce size.
This is a document in which the risks identified in the company are listed, as well as the means to be implemented to avoid them or, where appropriate, to limit them.
With the spread of COVID-19, the risk of contamination exists, by hypothesis, for all employees and threatens all jobs.
It appears necessary to update the DUER to take into account the emergence of this new threat, identify the risk it poses to the company and define the measures to be implemented to protect the health of employees.
This necessity arises, in our view, for two reasons:
- It could allow the employer to justify the illegitimate nature of the possible exercise of the right to withdraw by one of its employees;
- It could allow the employer, in a situation where its liability is sought in the context of a possible action for inexcusable fault, to prove that it has taken the necessary measures to protect the health and safety of its employees.
The implementation of teleworking
Government instructions are clear: teleworking should be used whenever possible.
In the context of an epidemic, the implementation of teleworking can be imposed unilaterally by the employer, without any particular formalities.
However, be careful not to use the teleworking measure with employees placed on partial activity: post-control checks are planned by the public authorities to verify the existence of the partial activity scheme.
The organization of work and workstations when teleworking is not possible
However, teleworking is not possible for all jobs: in such cases, employees may be asked to continue working (when such continuation is possible). Normally? Not quite.
Bound by a safety obligation, the employer must take the necessary measures to protect the health of its employees and, among these, ensure compliance with the barrier gestures recommended by the public authorities.
One of these preventative measures to be enforced is maintaining a distance of at least one meter between employees to prevent the spread of the epidemic by aerosol.
This measure requires a review of the configuration of employee workspaces, particularly when these are cramped.
Various options can be considered to enforce this measure: for example, setting up physical barriers between workstations, such as partitions, floor markings indicating the distances to be respected, plexiglass partitions separating employees from customers, a rotation system to limit the number of people present at the same time, avoiding meetings, etc.
The provision of sanitary and hygiene tools
The employer must ensure that there is a sufficient supply of soap, gels, hand towels, disinfectant wipes and tissues, and that garbage bags are made available to employees.
As a reminder, public authorities recommend using disposable tissues and throwing them away immediately.
Disinfection of workspaces
It is necessary that workspaces be regularly disinfected (including desks, computers, door handles and light switches, etc.).
It is also recommended to make disinfectant wipes available to employees.
In the event of an employee becoming infected, the Ministry of Labour recommends that a thorough cleaning of the workplace be carried out according to the following procedure:
- equipment for people in charge of cleaning floors and surfaces with the wearing of a single-use gown, household gloves (wearing a respiratory protection mask is not necessary due to the absence of aerosolization by floors and surfaces);
- Floor maintenance: prioritize a wet washing and disinfection strategy so that:
- floors and surfaces should be cleaned with a single-use cleaning cloth impregnated with a detergent product;
- floors and surfaces should then be rinsed with drinking water using another single-use washing cloth;
- Sufficient drying time should be allowed for these floors and surfaces;
- floors and surfaces must be disinfected with diluted bleach using a single-use cleaning cloth different from the previous two.
- The waste produced by the infected person follows the standard disposal process.
Awareness and work instructions
The employer must ensure that safety instructions and barrier gestures are regularly reminded to employees, whether verbally or by means of posters.
In particular, the employer must ensure that a hierarchical manager, with the necessary authority, competence and resources, is present in the workplace to verify that employees are complying with barrier gestures.
If there is any doubt about an employee's health, it is recommended to send them home and/or, in case of serious symptoms, to call the emergency services by calling 15.
Prevention of previously identified risks
The other risks that exist within the company should naturally not be forgotten by the employer.
The above recommendations are not exhaustive and should be adapted to the company's activity.
Job advice sheets for employees and employers, by professional sector or by job, regularly updated, are available on the Ministry of Labour's website.
