If there is anything we as Americans can do well, it's panic.
A call for a dusting of snow from the National Weather Service that has the most remote chance (in the neighborhood of 1 in 1,000) of being a significant snowfall becomes the storm of the century on television news, prompting a run on milk and toilet paper.
Then there was the Y2K bug. Remember that? People were hoarding generators, water and cash because all the computers that controlled life were going to go down. That threat of the end of civilization as we knew it went by without a burp. Then, instead of re-depositing the money, we spent it.
The latest coming storm is in the form of the swine flu pandemic. When it came to Mexico, hospitals and makers of surgical masks suddenly got busy, but because this is the United States, people are calling their lawyers.
Workers want to know whether they have to go to work in a pandemic of the H1N1 virus. Meanwhile, employers are wondering if they have to let in people who may have the flu.
Before everyone starts running for the thermometers, common sense and the rule of law should be remembered.
Tal Marnin, an attorney with White & Case in New York City, said the most sensible thing for any employer to do is to allow some flexibility, such as not using sick days when someone has the flu so they do not feel compelled to come to work if they are contagious. If an employer thinks employees might take advantage of that, he can ask for a doctor's note.
Other actions employers can take include asking employees if they have flu symptoms and sending them home if they seem ill.
However, if you suspect swine flu is running rampant at your workplace, you can't start wandering the aisles with thermometers.
"Right now, employers should not be taking body temperatures," Marnin said. "Generally, it's a prohibited medical exam."
But that can change if the region around a business becomes a flu hot spot. Even then, companies can't just line up occupants of their cubicles like Marine recruits at the barber and start taking temperatures.
Marnin said that if the flu does become a real pandemic and an employer wants to find out if workers are sick, the proper way to do that is to hire a nurse and check them in private.
Also, he said, if someone has the flu, management is not allowed to go out to the floor and announce, "Bill has the swine flu." Instead, a company can inform employees they may have been exposed, but it is supposed to protect the confidentiality of the affected employee.
If the swine flu sticks its snout into someone's business, the most important thing a company can do is be prepared. Marnin said employers should develop plans to keep their businesses going in case of high absentee rates, because employees might have to stay home not only if they are sick, but also if they have sick children or if schools are closed.
"You have to have plans that some employees can telecommute," he said.
Ultimately, the key is to treat employees with grace and compassion, because an employer that treats workers well generally will have a work force that will go the extra mile, even with the flu.
Ann Belser can be contacted at abelser(at)post-gazette.com. For more stories visit scrippsnews.com.
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