When several Disneyland (California) employees were reported to be among those infected in the recent measles outbreak, the vaccination debate ratcheted up. What’s more, that debate began to broaden beyond the specter of childhood illnesses, and concern mounted about how the once-eradicated disease could impact the workplace.
In the Disneyland case, the company asked workers who had contact with infected visitors not to come back to work until they provided proof of immunity. The company footed the bill for those who needed to update their vaccines.
Even still, the question remains: Do employers have responsibility to check the vaccination status of their employees?
In the United States, about 96 percent of adults are already immune to measles because they have all been vaccinated. Identifying the other 4 percent would be difficult – if not impossible – when you consider the restrictions that employers are faced with today.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Each week “resident riskologist” Keven Moore shines the light on America’s riskiest behaviors – from unsafe driving practices to workplace stress to common home accidents. And in the process, he provides the information needed to help people play it a little safer.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Yet, federal and state laws limit and employer’s ability control the spread of measles or requiring their employees to be vaccinated for the measles. Employers are not even allowed to ask employees if their children have been vaccinated for the measles.
Legally, employers could tell employees that they must be vaccinated; however, doing so exposes them to the potential risk of a lawsuits under federal and state laws, which are intended to protect workers from discrimination and to protect their privacy.
Workers are allowed to bring lawsuits under the Americans with Disabilities Act as well, which prohibits discrimination on medical grounds in the workplace. Also if an employee has a religious belief that forbids being vaccinated, then an employee can also sue their employer for discrimination under the Civil Rights Act of 1964 as well.
In addition, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, or HIPAA, and the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act, or GINA, are both designed to protect workers’ privacy and extends to a worker’s family. Because of these privacy and discrimination laws, employers have to weigh the risks of trying to identifying non-vaccinated employees and family members and then mandating that they get vaccinated.
The health care and restaurant (food handlers) industries have a little more flexibility in telling workers that they need to be vaccinated, but they cannot force them to do so. There have been several well-documented lawsuits against health care facilities that have tried to mandate such vaccinations. So they had to back off and instead look to reassign those employees who refuse vaccinations, where they have very little contact with patients.
From a privacy perspective – if an employer becomes aware that an employee or one of his children had contracted measles after the employee leaves a post on social media, the employer still cannot discuss the employee’s health with other employees because they are still bound by ADA and HIPAA not to reveal any information about it.
But the employer should educate all the other employees about how to prevent the spread of measles in the workplace, and they can encourage workers to stay home if they don’t feel well for any reason.
If a worker tells his employer he has not been vaccinated and have been exposed to someone with measles — then the employer has the right to ask the employee to stay home to better protect the rest of the employees.
Here are some ways employers can help control an infectious disease in the workplace.
• Develop an infection control plan specific for your company’s needs. Not every employer has to be so vigilant, but employers in the health care industry, emergency first responders, schools and those that work with foreign travelers on a regular basis should have something in place.
• Forecast to allow for employee absences due to factors such as personal or family member illness.
• Limit face-to-face contact. Implement guidelines to modify the frequency and type of contact (seating in meetings, office layout, shared workstations) among employees and between employees and customers.
• Establish a non-punitive liberal leave policy.
• Establish policies for flexible worksite (telecommuting) and flexible work hours (staggered shifts).
• Educate employees on measles prevention promoting respiratory hygiene/ cough etiquette, and the control of infections
• Establish policies for mandatory leave for employees suspected to be ill or exposed to somebody is ill.
• Provide sufficient and accessible infection control supplies (hand hygiene products, tissues, and receptacles for their disposal) in all business locations.
• Increase frequency of cleaning and disinfecting doorknobs, handles, tools, computers, etc.
Be safe, my friends.
Keven Moore is director of Risk Management Services for Roeding Insurance (www.roedinginsurance.com). He has a bachelor’s degree from University of Kentucky, a master’s from Eastern Kentucky University and 25-plus years of experience in the safety and insurance profession. He lives in Lexington with his family and works out of both the Lexington and Northern Kentucky offices. Keven can be reached at kmoore@roeding.com.