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Arizona OSHA Alert

May 7th, 2007 Posted by Amelia

According to this Arizona OSHA alert, employers should have a plan in place for an influenza outbreak. This is equally as important as the disaster plans many employers currently have for hurricanes, floods and other natural disasters. Most employers also have also considered what to do if there’s an extended power outage or even a fire.

“As with any catastrophe, having a contingency plan is essential.” This is what the Occupational Safety and Health Administration had to say in a recent announcement that addresses creating disaster plans in preparation for a potential flu pandemic, or a global disease outbreak.

Influenza pandemics occur when a new strain of the virus emerges that no one has had a chance to become immune to. Since no immunity has been built up against the virus, it quickly spreads from person to person worldwide.

The affects of a potential flu pandemic are addressed in an Arizona OSHA alert. The alert also addresses any type of potential global disease outbreak. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration encourages employers to protect their workers and be prepared for an outbreak. According to the OSHA, “As with any catastrophe, having a contingency plan is essential.”

A contingency plan created by each employer will help prevent or minimize widespread economic disruptions. A pandemic could cause employee absenteeism, interrupt the normal delivery of products, and change patterns in commerce.

A pandemic will affect grocery stores because they’ll be busier and may even run out of necessary supplies like hand sanitizer and tissues. Healthcare facilities may become overcrowded as more and more people get sick.

Tourism and travel will be affected. So will trade, the food supply and consumer buying in general. Ripples from these affects will ultimately spread to and affect investment and financial markets.

Pandemics have the potential to kill hundreds of thousands of people. The most recent influenza pandemic, the 1918 Spanish Flu, killed 50 to 100 million people in just 18 months. World War I killed fewer people. Nine million soldiers died and several million civilians also lost their lives.

No new strain of strain of influenza has been discovered, according to the OSHA. There is no risk of a pandemic any time in the near future.