COVID19

COVID-19 (CORONAVIRUS) – COMMUNICATION FOR WORKERS

As lockdown measures are beginning to be eased, more of our client companies are re-opening and we are able to place more of our agency workers back into work. Your health & safety at work is extremely important to Acorn and we are working with our clients to ensure that you are not put at risk in the workplace.

Staying safe in the workplace

All of our clients will be required to provide us with a detailed risk assessment detailing what measures are going to be taken to protect you. This information will be shared with you and you will be expected to follow all site health & safety rules at all times.

Measures will vary depending on your job role but some examples include:

Ensuring, wherever possible, that you are at least 2m away from your colleagues
Staggered start & finish times
Taking breaks on your own; in accordance with a rota
Wearing protective gloves or masks
Back-to-back or side-to-side working (rather than face-to-face)
Working in a fixed team, with the same people
Strict hand washing / hand sanitising procedures
Temperature checks
One-way systems
Virtual meetings and training
Avoiding public transport wherever possible and travelling on your own via car, bicycle or on foot.

It is essential that you adhere to the health & safety measures that have been put in place to protect you. If you have any concerns about where you are working, please contact your Acorn Representative.

Please also adhere to all social distancing rules when you are not at work. Further advice can be found on the Gov.uk website.

Symptoms

In order to avoid putting anyone at risk of contracting the virus, prior to any assignment, you will be asked a series of questions regarding symptoms of COVID-19. If you have any symptoms detailed below, you will not be able to start work. If you develop any of these symptoms while on an assignment, you cannot attend work and must contact your Acorn Representative as soon as possible.

The common symptoms are:

A high temperature (this means you feel hot to touch on your chest or back (you do not need to measure your temperature)
A new, continuous cough (this means coughing a lot for more than an hour, or 3 or more coughing episodes in 24 hours (if you usually have a cough, it may be worse than usual)
A loss or change to your sense of smell or taste – this means you've noticed you cannot smell or taste anything, or things smell or taste different to normal.

Self-Isolation

You must self-isolate in the following circumstances:

If you have Coronavirus symptoms (as above), you must self-isolate for 10 days from when the symptoms started.
If you live with (or are in a support bubble with) someone who has symptoms of Coronavirus or has tested positive for Coronavirus, you must self-isolate for 14 days.

In these circumstances, you may be eligible to receive statutory sick pay (SSP). You will be required to provide an Isolation Note which you can obtain from the NHS website. Please send this to your Acorn Representative who will advise if you are eligible.

Testing

The Government has now made testing available to anyone with Coronavirus symptoms (as above) who is unable to work from home. Testing must be done within the first 5 days of developing symptoms.

You can apply for a test online via this link: Apply for a coronavirus test. The test will either be administered at home or via a drive through testing centre.

Vulnerable or Shielding Workers

The shielding period in England ended on 31 July 2020 and will end in Wales on 16 August 2020. You will be able to return to work after the end of the shielding period. Your Acorn Representative will discuss the client’s COVID risk assessment with you and will advise on the measures in place to protect you.

Foreign Travel

If you choose to travel on holiday to a foreign country, you must check whether you will be required to quarantine for a period of 14 days. A full list of countries and travel rules are available on the Gov.uk website. You must inform your Acorn Representative of where you are travelling and the dates of travel. If you are required to quarantine, you will be unable to attend work for 14 days. This time off will be unpaid, unless you have sufficient holidays accrued to be paid for some or all of the time off.

Personal Details

For test & trace purposes, it is essential that your personal details such as; address, contact number, email address and emergency contacts are up-to-date. Please inform your Acorn Representative of any changes ASAP. You can also check with your Acorn Representative that the details currently held on file for you are correct.

Further information

We advise you to stay updated with the government guidance – this is a fast-moving area and the guidance is being updated daily https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus