Employers advised to prepare for swine flu pandemic
Employers are being offered advice on how to deal with an outbreak of swine flu in the workplace.
With a quarter of the UK’s workforce expected to suffer from the virus at any one time, the Forum of Private Business (FPB) has published guidance on how firms can prepare for the pandemic and the action that should be taken if employees are hit by the illness.
Measures include devising contingency plans which would see key members of staff set up to guide the organisation through the outbreak. The lobby group has also suggested that employees should be fully trained to cover for their colleagues in case of absence.
‘As a business owner, the more that you can put into preparing before a pandemic happens, the better placed your business will be to survive it unscathed,’ said the FPB
‘I think swine flu is a serious issue and one which needs some careful consideration by small businesses as, with few employees, they could be particularly badly affected.’
Meanwhile, recent reports suggest that the Government is considering plans to allow employees to authorise their own sick leave for up to two weeks as part of a package of measures to contain the virus.
However employers’ groups have warned that some workers will abuse the system by viewing the measure as a ‘freedom pass’ to take 14 days off work when it is not necessary.
Experts have estimated that the swine flu outbreak could cost businesses £1.5 billion every day.