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Business Planning
Overview
Each flu season, the workplace is a location where everyone can help stop the spread of influenza. Steps to take include getting a flu shot, practicing good health habits, and taking antiviral drugs if your health provider prescribes them.
In an influenza pandemic, businesses and other employers have a key role in protecting employees' health and safety as well as limiting the negative impact to the economy and society. Companies that provide critical infrastructure services, such as power and telecommunications, also have a special responsibility to plan for continued operation in a crisis and should plan accordingly. As with any catastrophe, having a contingency plan is essential.
Community strategies that delay or reduce the impact of a pandemic (also called non-pharmaceutical interventions) may help reduce the spread of disease until a vaccine is available.
HHS and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have developed guidelines, including checklists, to assist businesses, industries, and other employers in planning for a pandemic outbreak as well as for other comparable catastrophes.
Seasonal Flu
Seasonal Flu Information for Businesses and Employees
Get a toolkit, flyers, posters, and other materials to post and distribute in the workplace.
Podcast: Make It Your Business to Fight the Flu Toolkit (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
Pandemic Flu Planning
Community Guidance
 | Community Strategy for Pandemic Influenza Mitigation (PDF - 10.3 MB) Plan Now to Be Ready for the Next Flu Pandemic (PDF - 213.55 KB); (DOC - 51 KB) The Next Flu Pandemic: What to Expect (DOC - 47 KB); (PDF - 226.83 KB) CDC guidelines on actions, designed primarily to reduce contact between people, that community government and health officials can take to try to limit the spread of infection should a pandemic flu develop. Appendix 4 contains information for businesses and other employers. |
Critical Infrastructure Guide
Pandemic Influenza Preparedness, Response, and Recovery Guide for Critical Infrastructure and Key Resources (PDF - 4.97 MB) (U.S. Department of Homeland Security)
Provides contingency planning process for a pandemic. Also provides business planners with sector-specific and common pandemic information planning variables keyed to escalating disaster phases.
Employer and Employee Guidance
Employers
- What Employers Can Do to Protect Workers from Pandemic Influenza, Fact Sheet (PDF - 47.5 KB) - En Español (PDF - 40.5 KB) (Occupational Safety & Health Administration)
Provides employers a set of occupational safety and health controls, "hierarchy controls", to reduce exposures to pandemic influenza in their workplaces. - Healthcare Workplaces Classified as Very High or High Exposure Risk for Pandemic Influenza, What to do to protect workers. Fact Sheet, (PDF – 54.2 KB) En Español (PDF – 363 KB) (Occupational Safety & Health Administration)
Provides engineering controls, training practices, administrative controls, and recommended personal protective equipment for workplaces that require workers to have contact with people who are known or suspected to be infected with the pandemic virus. - Considerations for Antiviral Drug Stockpiling by Employers in Preparation for an Influenza Pandemic (PDF - 497 KB) (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services)
Provides guidance to employers on antiviral stockpiling to help protect the health of their employees and to assure continuity of operations. - Proposed Guidance on Stockpiling of Respirators and Facemasks in Occupational Settings (PDF - 437.54 KB) (Occupational Safety and Health Administration)
- Protect Yourself, Pandemic Flu Respiratory Protection. Quick Card, (PDF – 26.1 KB) - En Español (PDF – 38 KB) (Occupational Safety & Health Administration)
Provides brief information on who needs to wear a respirator and what's needed for a respiratory protection program. - Respiratory Infection Control: Respirators Versus Surgical Masks. Fact Sheet, (PDF – 1.6 MB) – En Español (PDF – 1.6 MB); (Occupational Safety & Health Administration)
Highlights the significant differences between these two types of personal protective equipment. - Interim Guidance on Environmental Management of Pandemic Influenza Virus
CDC guidance on hygiene and use of disinfectants on surfaces frequently touched by hand (equipment, door handles, light switches, etc.). - Pandemic Influenza Preparedness and Response Guidance for Healthcare Workers and Healthcare Employers (PDF - 405 KB) (Occupational Safety and Health Administration)
- Federal Employment Laws
- Federal Employment Laws - For Employers
- Contacts for Employers and Employees with Questions on Federal Employment Laws
Employees
- Cover Your Cough (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)Includes flyers and posters, in English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, Vietnamese, Tagalog, Chinese, Hmong, and Khmer.
- Stopping the Spread of Germs at Work (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)Basic precautions for protecting employee health.
- How to Protect Yourself in the Workplace during a Pandemic, QuickCard (PDF - 27.2 KB) - En Español (PDF – 40 KB) (Occupational Safety & Health Administration)
Provides basic hygiene and social distancing precautions that can be used in every workplace to avoid situations that increase the risk of exposure. - Protect Yourself, Pandemic Flu Respiratory Protection. Quick Card, (PDF – 26.1 KB) - En Español (PDF – 38 KB) (Occupational Safety & Health Administration)
Provides brief information on who needs to wear a respirator and what's needed for a respiratory protection program. - Respiratory Infection Control: Respirators Versus Surgical Masks. Fact Sheet, (PDF – 1.6 MB) – En Español (PDF – 1.6 MB) (Occupational Safety & Health Administration)
Highlights the significant differences between these two types of personal protective equipment. - Interim Guidance on Environmental Management of Pandemic Influenza Virus
CDC guidance on hygiene and use of disinfectants on surfaces frequently touched by hand (equipment, door handles, light switches, etc.). - Pandemic Influenza Preparedness and Response Guidance for Healthcare Workers and Healthcare Employers (PDF - 405 KB) (Occupational Safety and Health Administration)
- Guidance on Preparing Workplaces for an Influenza Pandemic (PDF - 313 KB) (Occupational Safety and Health Administration)
Provides guidance and recommendations on infection control in the workplace, including information on engineering controls, work practices, and personal protective equipment, such as respirators and surgical masks. - Federal Employment Laws
- Federal Employment Laws - For Employees
- Contacts for Employers and Employees with Questions on Federal Employment Laws
Checklists and Letter
- Law Enforcement Pandemic Influenza Planning Checklist (PDF - 467.82 KB)
- Correctional Facilities Pandemic Influenza Planning Checklist (PDF - 1.39 MB)
- Pandemic Preparedness Planning for US Businesses with Overseas Operations (PDF - 3.03 MB)
- Business Pandemic Influenza Planning Checklist [En Español] [PDF - 151 KB] [En Español PDF - 276 KB]
- Letter from the Secretaries of Commerce, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, and Labor
- Long-Term Care and Other Residential Facilities Pandemic Influenza Planning Checklist (PDF - 148.45 KB)
- Health Insurer Pandemic Influenza Planning Checklist (PDF - 102.74 KB)
- Travel Industry Pandemic Influenza Planning Checklist (PDF - 128.99 KB)
- Hospital Pandemic Influenza Planning Checklist (PDF - 2.03 MB)
H5N1 (Bird) Flu
- Guidance for Protecting Workers Against Avian Flu (Occupational Safety and Health Administration)Learn how employees who may be exposed to avian flu can stay protected.
- Quick Cards for Employees to Protect Yourself from Avian Flu (Occupational Safety and Health Administration)
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