Continuity planning essential for economic survival during a flu pandemic
World leaders and health experts are worrying about the ever-increasing possibility of a flu pandemic as officials recently confirmed the first cases of avian flu outside of Asia.
Businesses need to come up with continuity plans that will take into account a 35-per-cent reduction in the workforce should a flu pandemic arise, a recent report by BMO Nesbitt Burns economist Sherry Cooper stated.
“Companies must help protect employees’ health and they will need to work with health officials to minimize disruptions,” said Cooper’s report, titled Don’t Fear Fear and Don’t Panic Panic.
An earlier report by Cooper and BMO Nesbitt Burns analyst Donald Coxe warned that a pandemic could have an impact equal to the Great Depression.
One of Canada’s largest banks, TD Bank Financial Group, has a corporate-wide plan designed to address a pandemic scenario.
“We’ve been working on pandemic planning for several months,” said Jocelyne Achat, vice-president employee relations, TD Bank Financial Group. “We’ve developed an overall plan and we’ve also developed a monitoring system that’s already in place.”
The bank has identified critical business functions to ensure that if only 70 per cent of the workforce is healthy they’re able to do the most important tasks, said Achat.
“We would not expect 70 per cent of our workforce to produce 100 per cent of the work,” she said. “We would have to keep that balance and that would be a challenge for us but that would be our objective.”
The bank’s Business Continuity Group has also identified alternative work arrangements so employees can continue to work during a pandemic. Some of these include employees working at multiple and back-up locations, telecommuting and rotational work shifts.
TD’s Infectious Disease Committee scans health websites on a daily basis to track the progress of the avian flu as well as any other health threats that may arise.
During a normal year, the flu kills about 500,000 people worldwide, but the World Health Organization predicts that a flu pandemic could kill between two and 7.4 million people. The Public Health Agency of Canada estimates a pandemic would kill 11,000 to 58,000 Canadians.
The flu strain that health officials are worried about is called avian flu H5N1 and it usually only affects birds. In the past few years, the strain has been able to jump species and infect humans who have had direct contact with infected birds. Since 2003, 117 people have been infected, all of them in Asia.
The fear is that H5N1, which kills about half of those it infects, could cause a pandemic if it mutates into a virus that can be transmitted among humans.
Experts think migratory birds carried the avian flu from Asia to eastern Europe, but the chances of H5N1 spreading to Canada through bird migration are small. It’s more likely the virus would spread to Canada through international travel.
TD has taken that into consideration and is developing a checklist for employees who travel outside of North America. The list cautions employees to avoid direct contact with poultry, reminds them of the importance of good hygiene (handwashing and using antiseptic hand gels) and encourages employees to get a flu shot before they travel.
A flu shot won’t protect someone against avian flu but it will protect them against the “regular” flu, decreasing the likelihood of H5N1 acquiring the other virus’s genes and mutating into a virus that could be passed between humans.
“Upon their return, we make sure we always follow the guidelines of the World Health Organization,” said Achat. “If they advise quarantine, then we do that.”
Fear and anxiety among employees is also a concern. Achat said the best way to quell fears is to communicate openly and honestly with staff.
She sent each employee information on what they need to know about the flu, about avian flu and how to protect themselves. TD will also ensure that the company intranet has all the current facts and information as well as referrals to appropriate health websites.
Once a pandemic strikes there will be a high amount of stress and fear, said Achat. Managing employees’ emotions is as important as ensuring their physical health. To do that, the bank has two support services in place for employees. One provides factual, medical information and the other psychological support.
“We would make sure our employees would have somewhere to call and get support,” said Achat.
Later this month, Carolyn Bennett, Minister of State for Public Health, and Health Minister Ujjal Dosanjh will host a roundtable for Canadian business leaders to discuss ways to reduce the effects of a pandemic on the economy.
10 Tips for business continuity
•Check that existing contingency plans are applicable to a pandemic.
•In particular, check to see that core business activities can be sustained over several months.
•Plan accordingly for interruptions of essential governmental services such as sanitation, water, power and disruptions to the food supply.
•Identify your company’s essential functions and the individuals who perform them. The absence of these individuals could seriously impair business continuity. Build in the training redundancy necessary to ensure that their work can be done in the event of an absentee rate of at least 25 t0 30 per cent.
•Maintain a healthy work environment by ensuring adequate air circulation and posting tips on how to stop the spread of germs at work. Promote hand and respiratory hygiene. Ensure wide and easy availability of alcohol-based hand sanitizer products.
•Determine which outside activities are critical to maintaining operations and develop alternatives in case they cannot function normally. For example, what transportation systems are needed to provide essential materials? Does the business operate on “just in time” inventory or is there typically some reserve?
•Establish or expand policies and tools that enable employees to work from home with appropriate security and network access to applications.
•Expand online and self-service options for customers and business partners.
•Tell the workforce about the threat of pandemic flu and the steps the company is taking to prepare for it. In emergencies, employees demonstrate an increased tendency to listen to their employer. So clear and frequent communication is essential.
•Update sick leave and family medical leave policies and communicate with employees about the importance of staying away from the workplace if they become ill. Concern about lost wages is the largest deterrent to self-quarantine.
Source: Trust for America’s Health, BMO Nesbitt Burns
Businesses need to come up with continuity plans that will take into account a 35-per-cent reduction in the workforce should a flu pandemic arise, a recent report by BMO Nesbitt Burns economist Sherry Cooper stated.
“Companies must help protect employees’ health and they will need to work with health officials to minimize disruptions,” said Cooper’s report, titled Don’t Fear Fear and Don’t Panic Panic.
An earlier report by Cooper and BMO Nesbitt Burns analyst Donald Coxe warned that a pandemic could have an impact equal to the Great Depression.
One of Canada’s largest banks, TD Bank Financial Group, has a corporate-wide plan designed to address a pandemic scenario.
“We’ve been working on pandemic planning for several months,” said Jocelyne Achat, vice-president employee relations, TD Bank Financial Group. “We’ve developed an overall plan and we’ve also developed a monitoring system that’s already in place.”
The bank has identified critical business functions to ensure that if only 70 per cent of the workforce is healthy they’re able to do the most important tasks, said Achat.
“We would not expect 70 per cent of our workforce to produce 100 per cent of the work,” she said. “We would have to keep that balance and that would be a challenge for us but that would be our objective.”
The bank’s Business Continuity Group has also identified alternative work arrangements so employees can continue to work during a pandemic. Some of these include employees working at multiple and back-up locations, telecommuting and rotational work shifts.
TD’s Infectious Disease Committee scans health websites on a daily basis to track the progress of the avian flu as well as any other health threats that may arise.
During a normal year, the flu kills about 500,000 people worldwide, but the World Health Organization predicts that a flu pandemic could kill between two and 7.4 million people. The Public Health Agency of Canada estimates a pandemic would kill 11,000 to 58,000 Canadians.
The flu strain that health officials are worried about is called avian flu H5N1 and it usually only affects birds. In the past few years, the strain has been able to jump species and infect humans who have had direct contact with infected birds. Since 2003, 117 people have been infected, all of them in Asia.
The fear is that H5N1, which kills about half of those it infects, could cause a pandemic if it mutates into a virus that can be transmitted among humans.
Experts think migratory birds carried the avian flu from Asia to eastern Europe, but the chances of H5N1 spreading to Canada through bird migration are small. It’s more likely the virus would spread to Canada through international travel.
TD has taken that into consideration and is developing a checklist for employees who travel outside of North America. The list cautions employees to avoid direct contact with poultry, reminds them of the importance of good hygiene (handwashing and using antiseptic hand gels) and encourages employees to get a flu shot before they travel.
A flu shot won’t protect someone against avian flu but it will protect them against the “regular” flu, decreasing the likelihood of H5N1 acquiring the other virus’s genes and mutating into a virus that could be passed between humans.
“Upon their return, we make sure we always follow the guidelines of the World Health Organization,” said Achat. “If they advise quarantine, then we do that.”
Fear and anxiety among employees is also a concern. Achat said the best way to quell fears is to communicate openly and honestly with staff.
She sent each employee information on what they need to know about the flu, about avian flu and how to protect themselves. TD will also ensure that the company intranet has all the current facts and information as well as referrals to appropriate health websites.
Once a pandemic strikes there will be a high amount of stress and fear, said Achat. Managing employees’ emotions is as important as ensuring their physical health. To do that, the bank has two support services in place for employees. One provides factual, medical information and the other psychological support.
“We would make sure our employees would have somewhere to call and get support,” said Achat.
Later this month, Carolyn Bennett, Minister of State for Public Health, and Health Minister Ujjal Dosanjh will host a roundtable for Canadian business leaders to discuss ways to reduce the effects of a pandemic on the economy.
10 Tips for business continuity
•Check that existing contingency plans are applicable to a pandemic.
•In particular, check to see that core business activities can be sustained over several months.
•Plan accordingly for interruptions of essential governmental services such as sanitation, water, power and disruptions to the food supply.
•Identify your company’s essential functions and the individuals who perform them. The absence of these individuals could seriously impair business continuity. Build in the training redundancy necessary to ensure that their work can be done in the event of an absentee rate of at least 25 t0 30 per cent.
•Maintain a healthy work environment by ensuring adequate air circulation and posting tips on how to stop the spread of germs at work. Promote hand and respiratory hygiene. Ensure wide and easy availability of alcohol-based hand sanitizer products.
•Determine which outside activities are critical to maintaining operations and develop alternatives in case they cannot function normally. For example, what transportation systems are needed to provide essential materials? Does the business operate on “just in time” inventory or is there typically some reserve?
•Establish or expand policies and tools that enable employees to work from home with appropriate security and network access to applications.
•Expand online and self-service options for customers and business partners.
•Tell the workforce about the threat of pandemic flu and the steps the company is taking to prepare for it. In emergencies, employees demonstrate an increased tendency to listen to their employer. So clear and frequent communication is essential.
•Update sick leave and family medical leave policies and communicate with employees about the importance of staying away from the workplace if they become ill. Concern about lost wages is the largest deterrent to self-quarantine.
Source: Trust for America’s Health, BMO Nesbitt Burns
