'All employees, whether in train stations, on board, in maintenance or call centres, are trained and informed on what they have to do to for safety and prevention'
VIA Rail Canada (VIA Rail) has announced it is enforcing special health and safety measures for passengers and employees in the face of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.
''The health and safety measures of our passengers and employees is our top priority and we are focusing our efforts accordingly. At this point, all hands are on deck. All employees, whether in train stations, on board, in maintenance or call centres, are trained and informed on what they have to do to for safety and prevention,', says Cynthia Garneau, president and CEO.
The situation requires vigilance, he says, and to ensure that the company minimizes the risk of contamination, VIA Rail is deploying additional preventive and reactive measures to its corporate Illness Control Plan.
The company has increased daily cleaning and disinfection at train stations, with special attention to door handles, handrails, elevators, washrooms and switches, and it distributes masks and antiviral products like hand sanitizers at all major stations in its network and on trains.
Daily communications are also provided to keep passengers and employees informed, says VIA, and additional measures will be ready to deploy should the situation change.
Shopify, Google, Twitter and Microsoft have all asked their employees to work from home amid the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic.
As of March 12, there were 125,048 confirmed COVID-19 cases affecting 117 countries, territories and areas. It has claimed the lives of 4,613 people. In Canada, 93 cases and one death have been confirmed. The WHO proclaimed the coronavirus a pandemic on Wednesday.
