Resuming Office after Lockdown

    This is very critical topic for all of us to think & follow. Also, we need to consider common human nature & also Indian people mentality. I had few conversations with many people, newspaper articles, online articles to understand what everyone needs to be done to get back to office & start the office. I am mostly thinking about the company which works online or with computers. This might not work much for any position or company, where physical presence is needed. Few points are –

1.       Company should allow only 30 to 50% people to work from office.

2.       Creating Bubble

a.       If people needed in office, then create bubble / group & do not mix those groups. Like with 33% allowed in company, then make 3 groups. Allow only 1 group to work in office for 1 week & then change the group.

b.       No one person from group 1 should be allowed to go to office with group 2. This will avoid cross infection.

c.        Keep 1 outermost cabin vacant for any emergency / urgent employee from other group need to come to office. But that should be with management approval. Also they shouldn’t be allowed to talk / discuss with anyone in office.

3.       Company should allow Work-from-Home to people whose presence is not need in the company & work remotely.

4.       Company as in HR or team leads or PM or any other should not allow any person in office if anyone is sick or looks like sick. Let the person take leave.

5.       Keep 1-2 small cabins for people who are sick like cold, coughing, etc., but not catched in thermal scanning at reception.

6.       Split the teams, who can work in odd hours & routine time like shifts, which can add to social distancing.

7.       People sitting arrangement should be alternative, from all side (vertically & horizontally).

8.       Do the marking on flooring to make the social distancing compulsory in offices.

9.       The good partition between people with transparent shield will work, if someone mistakenly sneezes or cough or while general talking with each other.

10.   Avoid touch doorknobs like keep the maximum doors open. Use tissue paper to open & close toilet doors or any door, so that direct contact is avoided.

11.   We will need to wear mask mostly all the time in office.

12.   We will need to keep on washing our hands regularly, after some time.

13.   Keep sanitizer in office at many places with touchless dispenser. (like manual leg operated dispenser or sensor-based dispenser).

14.   Avoid group meetings or calls. We will need to sit on our place & take calls.

15.   Best would be keep the cabins locked.

16.   Meeting rooms or cabins or conference rooms should have new capacity restrictions. (like the conference room where 10 people could sit, reduce the capacity to 4 pax)

17.   Also, will need new capacity restriction for elevators.

18.   Cafeteria tables / chairs / any other platforms / flooring should be disinfected constantly.

19.   Room should have proper ventilation in all rooms. But I know this is not possible in all the places, as many places have fixed glasses or jammed big windows, so you can use Hepa Filter fitted Air Purifier. Which is cost-effective alternative for less infection closed room.

20.   Stop the use of biometric access control in office & use card-based access control or any other touchless system.

21.   Security area / entrance should be made strict – with temperature checks for all individuals. Disinfection of personals before entering the office like sanitizer sprays / blowers or body rollers, hand rubs, disinfect the shoes from base.

In some places like big companies can check the oxygen level for person. (It’s a digital meter & like clip for index finger)

22.   Observe any person having any symptoms like cough, cold, breathlessness, etc. (Remember, Breathlessness can happen even if person is using mask all the time). If anyone is found with symptoms, let the person go home for isolation & work-from-home.

23.   Some companies can think of doing a weekly to monthly fumigation of whole office to make it disinfected.

24.   If there is any corona positive patient found in office, then make the office closed for 2-3 days, fumigate it. High exposed colleagues should be sent for 14 days of quarantine & less exposed colleagues should be kept on observation.  (Better guidelines are available online & changing as per the time 😊)

 

Companies should encourage employees / contractors / associates / vendors to following Health Ministry guidelines to boost our immunity like following AYUSH guidelines, daily exercise.

Recently new thing, which Indian government is providing or encouraging is taking Arsenium Album 30 dose to boost immunity. Company can provide it to employees. But there are many many immunity boosters availavle in market from Ayurveda, Homeopathy, Unani or Allopathy medicines.

But, after thinking about these points about protecting ourself or others during this pandemic, one thing is for sure. Our self-discipline is most important for each of us to follow. Lockdowns or no-lockdown, restrictions or no restrictions, guidelines to follow or no guidelines, but following self-discipline individually by everyone will only make us survive in this pandemic, atleast till we get vaccine.

Be Safe, Take Precaution & Follow Self-discipline…..

 

Thank you for reading….!!!

OJ