The question of productivity is always on the business leader's mind, whether it's empowering employees to do more, sometimes with less, or cutting down on the number of sick days or unproductive hours of employees who are feeling under the weather.
While bosses want their workers hard at work, even when unwell, sometimes the diligent employees cause the greatest loss of productivity by coming to work when sick.
Sick employees do manage to get some work done, but they also contribute to the spread of disease around the workplace, causing more people to take time off and make use of their medical aid. And in this day and age of mobile workers and globalisation, it's not simply the threat of catching a cold that businesses have to worry about.
The 2009 scare of a global outbreak of the H1N1 influenza virus or 'swine flu' may have died down, but the virus is still a real threat. “It's not simply a matter of two or three people reporting sick that companies need to be worried about,” says Ansophie Strydom, GM of business development at ContinuitySA.
“The real threat to business is when employees are struck down in large numbers. How will a business continue if a third or more of its employees are booked off, or even worse, quarantined?”
Whether it's educating people to take better care of themselves, encouraging them to get their flu vaccines or training them on how to avoid infectious situations, business can take simple precautions to significantly reduce the number of infections this year.
Clifford Clibborn-Dyer is the regional chief operating officer for Investec Private Bank, in Cape Town, and is an active member of the Business Continuity Institute (BCI). As a Hong Kong expat, he experienced the impact of SARS on the Hong Kong economy and business environment, and is painfully aware of the general lack of preparedness of local companies for a viral outbreak. He is also aware of simple preventative measures they are not taking.
He adds that research has shown that simply washing one's hands regularly can ward off flu. “Additionally, more people around the globe have found that antibacterial hand sanitizers are optimal in avoiding viruses. These alcohol-based gels are as effective as soap and water, are quick and convenient to use, and don't require people to share towels. They work by damaging the shell of the virus, thereby inactivating it and preventing its spread.”
ContinuitySA has taken the lead with the adoption of hand sanitizers from Amber Products at all entrances to its recovery sites in Africa. This simple measure will assist in reducing the threat of an infectious outbreak in these centres in the midst of an emergency. Amber Products provides a range of instant hand sanitizers suited to almost any environment where people gather, enabling them to sanitize their hands without water, soap or towels in a few seconds.
Of course, while cleaning one's hands with antibacterial hand gel can break the chain of transmission, it can't completely eliminate the risk of flu infection. “Hand sanitizers are one option in a host of preventative measures,” adds Strydom. “Maintaining the strength of your immune system by eating a healthy diet, exercising regularly and getting enough sleep will also assist in keeping infection at bay.”
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