Library Board Meeting Update

The Library Board approved the new Contagious Symptoms and Contagious Condition policy at its regular meeting last evening.  Please take the time to read the entire policy, which is included at the end of this blog post.  It will be Section A-11 in the Personnel Policy Manual.

The Board also awarded the contract for new and replacement furniture for Cumming Library to Impact Office Interiors for $104,056.

The Board voted to write off $34,781.44 in patron debt remaining from 2016.


FORSYTH COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY PERSONNEL POLICY MANUAL

Effective March 16, 2020

Introduction:

The Library strives to provide a safe and healthy workplace for all employees. This policy outlines our overall response to a pandemic flu outbreak or similar illness.

This policy outlines specific steps the Library takes to safeguard employees' health and well-being during a flu pandemic, or similar illness, while ensuring the Library's ability to maintain essential operations and continue providing essential services to our patrons. In addition, it provides guidance on how we intend to respond to specific operational and human resource issues in the event of a pandemic.

Section A-11       Contagious Symptoms and Contagious Condition

Sick employees who report to work with Contagious Symptoms and/or a Contagious Condition, as those terms are defined in this Section, may significantly impact Library operations due to the potential for spreading sickness, diminished productivity, and lack of quality or attention to safety.

Employees must consider options and practices that will reduce the risk of contracting a contagious condition or passing on a contagious condition by observing healthy practices such as: receiving flu vaccinations, covering their noses or mouths when coughing or sneezing, washing or sanitizing their hands, using sanitizers on common work areas, and other health practices that are designed to reduce infection and the spread of disease. Employees must also refrain from reporting to work with Contagious Symptoms and/or a Contagious Condition, so as not to spread a condition or disease.

In the interest of maintaining a safe and healthy workplace, the Library may require persons with Contagious Symptoms and/or a Contagious Condition not to report to work and/or may send employees with Contagious Symptoms and/or a Contagious Condition home.

(a) Contagious Symptoms and/or Condition

For purposes of this Section, Contagious Symptoms and/or a Contagious Condition exist when:

1. An employee exhibits influenza-related symptoms (e.g., fever, vomiting, diarrhea, headache, cough, sore throat, runny or stuffy nose, muscle aches) or other symptoms, described by a public health organization as indicative of other contagion, such as Coronavirus, SARS, swine flu, H1N1, etc.; and/or
2. An employee is diagnosed with an infectious/contagious condition (e.g., influenza, strep throat, tuberculosis, bacterial meningitis, mononucleosis, mumps, measles, rubella, chicken pox, etc.); or
3. An employee and/or family member/household member has recently traveled or plans to travel to a geographic area or has been subjected to a confined area, such as cruise ship or airplane, actively identified by a recognized health organization to present a high degree of contagion health risk or an area for which the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued a Level 2 or 3 travel advisory.
4. An employee and/or family member/household member is exposed to the contagious condition in the community.

(b) Workplace Requirements


The Library and its employees bear responsibility for a safe and productive workplace environment. Accordingly, an employee with Contagious Symptoms and/or a Contagious Condition:

1. Will not report to the workplace so as not to infect other employees or members of the public.
2. Will not report to the workplace until his/her symptoms have subsided.  A health care provider’s statement that an employee may return to work may be required during epidemics, pandemics, or similar situations during which enhanced precautions are warranted.
3. Will   not   report   to   the   workplace   after   returning   from, or after a family/household member has returned from, a geographic area or confined area recently identified by a recognized health organization to present a high degree of contagion health risk or an area for which the CDC has issued a Level 2 or 3 travel advisory.  In  such  case,  the  employee  cannot  return  to  the  workplace  until completion of the incubation period as identified by a public health organization and until the employee has been cleared with a health care provider’s statement that the  employee  may  return  to  work.  (Such statement must be submitted to Human Resources for approval as provided in subsection (d), below, in advance of returning to the workplace.)
4. May be sent home, with or without the opportunity to work from home, based on observations of symptoms of a Contagious Condition.

(c) Absence Due to Contagious Symptoms or Conditions


An employee who has been sent home by the Library and/or has not reported to work due to Contagious Symptoms and/or a Contagious Condition, or who has been quarantined, will be required to use accrued Sick Leave or Annual Leave. If accrued paid leave is unavailable or exhausted, the employee will be recorded as absent with approved unpaid leave. In the event that an employee’s absence pursuant to an approved unpaid leave extends beyond five (5) days and/or an employee’s absence pursuant to an approved unpaid leave becomes a recurring issue, and such absences are deemed to constitute an undue burden upon the Library, the Library may request that the employee provide a doctor’s certification as to the employee’s current condition. Ultimately, any prolonged absences will be addressed in compliance with all federal and state laws and regulations, including the ADA and the FMLA (where a serious health condition is involved).

The Library may approve an employee to work from home or another private location while recuperating. Such approval is dependent upon consideration of factors, including the employee’s position, the severity of the illness, and other safety and logistical considerations.

Any employee subject to absence due to Contagious Symptoms or a Contagious Condition must contact Human Resources to determine if the employee and medical condition qualifies for Family Medical Leave. In such case, the policy covering Family Medical Leave Act shall apply.

(d) Return to Work from Contagious Symptoms or Contagious Condition

A health care provider’s statement that the Contagious Symptom or Contagious Condition that the employee experienced has been cleared and the employee may return to work without risk to other employees may be required during epidemics, pandemics, or similar situations during which enhanced precautions are warranted. The written statement must be submitted electronically to Human Resources, which shall review and must approve the release before the employee may return to work. An employee failing to provide a written return to work authorization prior to reporting to work will be immediately sent home and may be subject to disciplinary action for failure to comply with this requirement.

(e) Compliance

Due to the seriousness of the ramifications of non-compliance, any violation of the policy as set forth will subject the employee to disciplinary action, up to and including, termination.

This Section will be administered in accordance with all federal and state laws and regulations, including the ADA and the FMLA (where a serious health condition is involved).

(f) Scope of Policy

This section applies to all employees, volunteers, interns, and any other individuals performing services on the Library’s behalf, whether paid or unpaid.