The SARS CoV-2 virus has had a different effect on construction as opposed to other industries. These essential workers find themselves in various indoor and outdoor environments either working alone or along side with multiple trades. So the exposures vary with job work tasks and locations. This brief examines when it is necessary to employ more engineering or administrative controls to protect worker health.

1. Life After SARS CoV-2:
Returning to Work in
Construction Industry
Presented by:
Bernard L. Fontaine, Jr., CIH, CSP, FAIHA
The Windsor Consulting Group, Inc.
TEL: +1 732.221.5687
Email: windsgroup@aol.com

2. Life After SARS CoV-2: Returning to Work

3. Life After SARS CoV-2: Returning to Work
Situation Report (17 Jun 20)
• 8.37 million confirmed cases (118,502 new)
• 449,397 deaths (3,255 new)
• India’s daily incidence above 10,000 new cases for 6th day
• Pakistan reported 5,839 new cases
• Bangladesh highest daily totals —3,862 new cases
• Russia remains steady at about 8,500-9,000 new cases/day
• Iran reported 2,612 new cases
• Brazil reported 34,918 new cases
• Other hot spots - Chile, Mexico, Peru, and Colombia
• Eastern Mediterranean Hot Sports Qatar, Bahrain, Oman,
Saudi Arabia, and Kuwait
• US CDC report 2.10 million total cases (18,577 new) and
116,140 deaths (496 new)

4. Life After SARS CoV-2: Returning to Work
Adults Signs and Symptoms of Exposure
Appear 2-14 days after virus exposure. People may have COVID-19:
• Cough
• Shortness of breath or difficulty breathing
• Fever
• Chills
• Muscle pain
• Sore throat
• New loss of taste or smell

5. Life After SARS CoV-2: Returning to Work
Children Signs and Symptoms of Exposure
• Males 104 (60.8%) and females 67 (39.2%)
• Symptoms: fever, cough, runny nose, vomiting and diarrhea, blood vessel
inflammation like Kawasaki disease that includes fever, rash, eye irritation,
swollen lymph nodes and/or swelling of the hands and feet
• Exacerbate medical conditions: asthma, juvenile diabetes, blood disorders,
heart or liver disease, kidney disease (dialysis), weakened immune system
• Diagnosis
• Asymptomatic infection 27 (15.8%)
• Upper respiratory tract infection 33 (19.3%)
• Pneumonia 111 (64.9%)

6. Life After SARS CoV-2: Returning to Work
Children – Signs and Symptoms of Exposure
• Cough — 83 (48.5%)
• Pharyngeal erythema — 79 (46.2%)
• Fever — 71 (41.5%)
• Highest temperature during hospitalization days 3 (1–16)
• <37.5°C 100 (58.5%)
• 37.5–38.0°C 16 (9.4%)
• 38.1–39.0°C 39 (22.8%)
• >39.0°C 16 (9.4%)
• Diarrhea — 15 (8.8%)
• Fatigue — 13 (7.6%)
• Rhinorrhea —13 (7.6%)
• Vomiting — 11 (6.4%)
• Nasal congestion —9 (5.3%)
• Tachypnea on admission — 49 (28.7%)
• Tachycardia on admission — 72 (42.1%)
• Oxygen saturation <92% during period of hospitalization — 4 (2.3%)

7. Life After SARS CoV-2: Returning to Work
US Legal and Employment Standards
• Federal Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA)
• Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA)
• Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)
• Center for Disease Control (CDC)
• State Regulations and Local Ordinances
• National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health

8. American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA)
• At-home Services
• Construction
• General Office Settings
• Gyms and Workout Facilities
• Hair and Nail Salons
• Retail Outlets
• Restaurants
• Ride-share, Taxi, Limo and Personal Drive for Hire
(Another ten more market segment guidance programs published)
Life After SARS CoV-2: Returning to Work

9. American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA)
• Contractors develop formal or informal
workplans
• Monitor, assess, and implement strategy for
workers testing positive or express symptoms
• Improve physical distancing, ventilation,
hand washing, cleaning practices, limit
personnel in bathrooms, shower/change
and break rooms
• Provide and use respirators and other PPE
• Screen workers for SARS CoV-2 and symptoms
of COVID-19
Life After SARS CoV-2: Returning to Work

10. American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA)
• Discard contaminated single use respirators
and PPE and/or launder work clothing regularly
• New employee site orientation and training
• Daily ‘toolbox talks’ on safe work procedures
• Evaluation of hygiene/sanitation facilities
• Cleaning and disinfecting practice/procedures
• Written site specific compliance checklists
• Administratively monitor workers and jobs
Life After SARS CoV-2: Returning to Work

11. Life After SARS CoV-2: Returning to Work
Construction Work Plan
• Follow US CDC Interim Guidance for Implementing Safety Practices
• Develop response plan to communicate facts of SARS-CoV-2 virus
• Complete a task-based risk assessment / mapping project site for best
strategies for social distancing, and ensure staff have face coverings
• Reduce the number of essential staff to complete the work
• Temporary spaces (clean and disinfect site/job trailers daily). Improve
worker handwashing with soap and water or hand sanitizers
• Develop policies for customers/clients, contractors and site visitors
• No hand shaking/physical contact with worker or other personnel

12. Life After SARS CoV-2: Returning to Work
Construction Work Plan
• Prevent symptomatic onto the worksite. Work with your health
providers for support and guidance
• Reduce tasks requiring large numbers of people to be in one area
(limit to 10 or less workers)
• Design work to reduce/eliminate trade stacking in the same area
• Clean and disinfect their shared workstations and equipment
after use
• Report/remove workers who displays symptoms of exposure

13. Life After SARS CoV-2: Returning to Work
Construction Work Plan
• Eliminate non-essential visits like job tours, vendor demos, etc.
• Maintain a daily approved visitor log including the date, time,
and contact information of the visitor
• Ensure toolbox talks have adequate spacing and only have one
person note who is in attendance
• Stagger shifts and other trades to isolate and compartmentalize
staff
• Implement flexible work schedules based on work schedule

14. Life After SARS CoV-2: Returning to Work
Construction Work Plan
• Consider a 4-day work week to allow for 72 hours of downtime at
the project site to limit exposure.
• Stop employees from randomly walking floors, between floors,
or buildings to reduce cross-contamination.
• Provide for several hand washing stations with soap and water in
common areas and throughout the site.
• Modify break areas to allow for social distancing. Stagger breaks
to reduce people in break areas.

15. Life After SARS CoV-2: Returning to Work
Construction Work Plan
• Eliminate sharing personal hand tools and large shared tools shall
be cleaned before and after use.
• Reduce number of people in a van or pool vehicle for commuting
to and from the job site. Wear respirators when traveling together.
• Encourage staff to wash clothes daily and face coverings daily on
the warmest setting possible.
• Monitor employees’ wellness. If they are not feeling well, stay
home.

16. Life After SARS CoV-2: Returning to Work
Construction Work Plan
• Revisit your leave or sick program to allow for time off work.
• Workers who are sick should remain isolated away from work.
• Get update in country information about SARS-CoV-2 guidelines.
• If a positive COVID-19 case amongst the workforce is identified:
• Quickly disinfect spaces the worker was at working, and
• Complete contact tracing for anyone that came in contact with the worker.

17. Life After SARS CoV-2: Returning to Work
Construction Work Plan
• Employee who tests positive without symptoms:
• Isolate employee from the work area who remain on the job
• Isolate all individuals working with employee testing positive
• All parties will follow social distancing rules
• Notify all subcontractors and other parties and in-country authorities
• Isolate worker for a minimum of 14 days
• Follow primary care and other healthcare instructions and guidance
• Construct return-to-work policies after isolation and no symptoms
• Worker with symptoms must return home and cannot return until 72
hours after being symptom-free without medication

18. Life After SARS CoV-2: Returning to Work
Construction Work Plan
• Clean and disinfect work area with positive tested worker should
be done immediately by trained personnel using respirators and
personal protective equipment (PPE).
• Remove visibly dirty surfaces and clean using a detergent or soap
and water PRIOR to disinfection.
• For disinfection, diluted household bleach solutions, alcohol
solutions with at least 70% alcohol, and EPA-registered
disinfectants on List-N should be effective. Recommended bleach
solution mixture for cleaning.

19. Life After SARS CoV-2: Returning to Work
Construction Work Plan
• Consider wearable technology such as proximity devices worn
on hard hats or wrist bands to monitor employee physical
distancing and tracing of contacts.
• Consider screening workers’ skin temperature before work shift
begins daily before taking any medication to reduce body temp.
• Wear respirator and PPE for close contact activities that cannot
adjust for physical distancing.
• Workers must be transparent about symptoms: coughing,
sneezing, fever, shortness of breath, rash (young workers)

20. Life After SARS CoV-2: Returning to Work
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Innovative risk reduction (distance or hand contact) generally for industries and countries
• Approach to reduce infections in businesses that were evaluated or shown to be effective
• Elements of a COVID19 operational plan to address this pandemic
• Helpful resources (trade groups, government, partners) on reducing risk of infection
• Challenging issues that have come up related to return to work/ re-opening
• Experience testing in the workplace (e.g. return to work or workplace monitoring)
• Experience with contact tracing in the workplace
• Role of PPE (respirators, gloves, face shields) in reopening business
• Approaches taken for PPE shortages and counterfeit supply chain
• Increase in absenteeism due to COVID19 upon return to work/reopening

21. Life After SARS CoV-2: Returning to Work

22. Life After SARS CoV-2: Returning to Work

23. Life After SARS CoV-2: Returning to Work