Yes. All of the policies, forms, charts, and CDC/WHO info is available on our employee webpage: http://delongsinc.com/covid-19-employees-updates/. It must be accessed by clicking on or typing that link. It cannot be accessed via our normal website. It is really useful to save the link as a favorite or a bookmark. That way it is easy to access. Please check back to the page often, as things are always changing. Signing up for the text notifications not only enables us to get info to you quicker but allows for you to text directly to the leadership team to get questions answered.
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Yes. Social distancing guidelines must be maintained (the 3 – 6-foot distance), and it is important to be extra mindful of hygiene habits in close quarters. In-person conversation should be limited to business-related needs. Gathering in offices to socialize presents an unnecessary risk. We encourage people to try and use text, email, and/or phone to limit unnecessary in-person meetings, but all employees are still welcome in the offices.
Yes. All of this information is available on our employee webpage. There is a red button on that page that says, “Paid Leave Information and Request Forms.” Clicking that button will direct you to the paid leave information page. This page has all of our policies, a chart to help make it clear what reasons for leave are covered, as well as a link to the DOL page which provides additional guidance on this new law. In summary, each full-time employee is eligible for 80 hours of paid sick leave to be used for any of the 6 very specific reasons as defined by the law. Depending on the reason for leave, it may be paid at 100% or 2/3 of the employee’s rate of pay (up to a max of $25/hour). Employees with at least 30 days of service, are entitled to FMLA leave paid at 2/3 of their rate of pay, up to a max of $25/hour for childcare issues related to COVID-19. We could spend hours getting into the details of this new law. The best thing to do is contact HR (call Amber or Kyla, email us, text via the app) and ask questions about how this leave applies to your specific situation. It is very important that employees provide the proper documentation and leave request forms under this law. The leave request forms are available on the employee website.
Yes. We have worked with CDC/WHO guidelines and spoken directly with Cole and Pettis County and MO State Health Departments to understand what an appropriate response plan should be. We have developed response plans for multiple situations that go above and beyond their recommendations to ensure we take as much care with our staff as possible. The first plan is initiated when we receive notice that an employee or a member of an employee’s household has been tested for COVID-19 and is awaiting test results. The second plan is initiated when an employee or their direct contact has a confirmed positive COVID-19 test result. These plans are outlined in charts on the employee website. Although we will promptly notify affected personnel of potential exposure per the chart guidelines, it is important to note we will NEVER release an individual employee’s name. We will notify impacted employees that they have had direct contact with someone who is being tested/has tested positive. We will require/permit affected employees to take leave depending on their level of exposure. We have also contacted 3 third-party cleaning companies to ensure we can get impacted work areas cleaned and sanitized professionally and promptly.
If a member of your household is being tested for COVID-19, make sure they ask for guidance regarding your actions such as self-isolating. Obtaining this information will make the absence compensable under the FFCRA. Best-case would be if that health care provider would issue a note for impacted members of the household, but at a minimum, you will need the name of the health care provider. A health care provider must be a doctor or nurse practitioner to qualify for paid leave under FFCRA.
At this time, we do NOT anticipate being forced to close. Because of our essential business status, we are able to continue allowing employees to work and earn the income to which they have become accustom. We do have to balance our responsibility to provide stable employment with our responsibility to provide a safe working environment. We will make every effort to ensure employees potentially displaced by a forced cleaning/disinfecting are provided the opportunity to work in other areas, as long as they are not sick and pose no threat to other workers. If staffing levels in a department/area/facility would become so drastically impacted that it is no longer feasible to operate as normal, we would also seek out alternative working arrangements and redistribution of workers to offset staffing shortages. The best way to ensure we are able to continue functioning is for each employee to take their responsibility of adhering to social distancing and hygiene guidelines very seriously. These are very small actions that have far reaching impact on our entire team and community.
Employees are entitled to the 80 hours of paid emergency sick leave and paid expanded FMLA as established by the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA). Beyond those entitlements, the answer is unclear.
We will make every effort to enable employees to continue working safety through alternative work arrangements, including telework or department, shift, or facility relocation.
If alternative work arrangements are unavailable, we will have to address those situations as they arise. There are too many unknown variables to be able to provide a blanket answer at this time. Some of those variables include how long the plant would have to close, how much of the plant/staff is impacted, and how many times these impacts may occur.
It is our priority to do all we can to help our team members through these challenging times, but that also includes ensuring the viability of the company and continued employment once this outbreak subsides.
Will employees get paid if the plant closes?
Employees are entitled to the 80 hours of paid emergency sick leave and paid expanded FMLA as established by the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA). Beyond those entitlements, the answer is unclear. We will make every effort to enable employees to continue working safety through alternative work arrangements, including telework or department, shift, or facility relocation. If alternative work arrangements are unavailable, we will have to address those situations as they arise. There are too many unknown variables to be able to provide a blanket answer at this time. Some of those variables include how long the plant would have to close, how much of the plant/staff is impacted, and how many times these impacts may occur. It is our priority to do all we can to help our team members through these challenging times, but that also includes ensuring the viability of the company and continued employment once this outbreak subsides.
