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Most people don’t think of the flu as a workplace hazard, but a recent South Dakota OSHA alert makes it clear it is. When you think about influenza, or the flu, you probably think about the seasonal disease that appears each fall and winter. We associate the flu with annoying, uncomfortable symptoms. Many don’t consider it a threat to anyone except infants, seniors, and people whose immune systems are compromised.

But the flu can be more than a seasonal annoyance as this South Dakota OSHA alert points out. Even though most people have or develop a certain level of immunity to the common forms of the flu virus, the potential for an influenza pandemic exists.

Consider the facts. If a new form of influenza were to develop, no one would have built up immunity to it. The flu virus could then spread quickly, taking a toll on human life before a vaccine could be developed.

This concern isn’t just theory. Influenza pandemics have happened before. The last pandemic was in 1957. This flu killed 1 million people around the world. This influenza pandemic was contained quickly. The Spanish Flu of 1918 killed 25 million people in only 25 weeks. Moreover, approximately 20% of the world’s population contracted this disease.

A pandemic, such as the one of 1918, not only can result in a high death toll, it can disrupt society and cause havoc with the economy worldwide. OSHA feel employers and employees alike should prepare in case of a pandemic.

Currently, no pandemic exists, but a concern is the avian influenza. This virus, also known as the bird flu, has spread from wild birds to domestic birds, such as chicken and turkeys. A few cases exist where the flu spread from birds to humans. The concern is if the virus mutates so it can transmit easily between people, a pandemic could occur.

To put the impact of an influenza pandemic in perspective, consider that the AIDS virus has killed 25 million people in 25 years. The Spanish Flu killed the same number of people in just 25 weeks.

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