COVID-19 / Coronavirus protocol

Version: 3 / date: 1-10-2020

In connection with the situation regarding COVID-19 or the Corona virus, this protocol will apply to all companies belonging to the CVB Ecologistics group from 23 March 2020 and until further notice. 

Updates to this protocol are always provided via the front page of the (internal) CVB portal and via the (external) website: www.cvbecologistics.com. On both media the information can be found with the news items.

Since the CVB Ecologistics group has companies in several (European) countries, it mainly follows the advice of the World Health Organization.

Furthermore, additional advice and regulations apply in the various countries where the companies are located. This protocol brings together regulations and advice as far as possible and then applies it uniformly in the group of companies.  

General information

• https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019
• https://www.rivm.nl/coronavirus-covid-19/actueel
• https://www.info-coronavirus.be/
• https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/
• https://www.gouvernement.fr/info-coronavirus

Symptoms 

Most common:

• Fever
• Dry cough
• Tiredness

Less common:

• pain in the body
• throat pain
• diarrhea
• conjunctivitis
• headache
• impaired taste or smell
• rash or discoloration of fingers or toes

Serious:

• shortness of breath or respiratory problems
• chest pain or pressure
• impaired speech or mobility

General advice

1. Seek immediate medical help if you have any serious symptoms.
2. Contact your family doctor if you have a fever, a cough or breathing problems.
3. Stay at home if you feel ill and/or isolate yourself from others. If you have to leave the house, wear a mouth mask.

General prevention

• Keep at least 1 meter distance from each other.                                                              
• Wash your hands regularly.             
• Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue or with the inside of your elbow if you cough or sneeze.    
• Don't touch your eyes, nose and mouth.                                                                                                                                                                                       
• Do not shake hands and avoid other physical contact.    
• Avoid crowded areas.                                                           
• Avoid contact with sick people. 
• Keep a safe distance from people coughing or sneezing.   
• Wear a mouth mask in locations where there is a high transmission risk and/or where keeping a distance is not possible and/or difficult.
• Keep up to date with the latest information on Covid-19 provided from reliable sources. 

Important to know in general

• Covid-19 distribution is mainly human-to-human.
• The time between exposure to COVID-19 and the onset of symptoms is generally 5 to 6 days but can be a maximum of between 1 and 14 days.
• There is less chance of transmission outside than inside. Inside, good ventilation is important.
• Positive tests for Covid-19 have been found among dogs, cats, ferrets and minks. Dogs, cats and ferrets can transmit the virus from animal to animal, but not from animal to human. Minks, on the other hand, have been shown to be able to transmit Covid-19 to humans.
• Studies show that Covid-19 can survive for 72 hours on plastic and stainless steel, less than 4 hours on copper and less than 24 hours on cardboard. It is important to know that the virus can easily be killed with regular cleaning products and soap. Therefore Clean risky surfaces regularly and wash your hands after you have touched such a surface.

Measures applicable at CVB Ecologistics group

A. For employees interacting on the work floor:

1. Always keep sufficient distance from each other.

The nature and occupancy of the work, in combination with the buildings and grounds of the business locations, sufficiently facilitate the strict application of this rule. Congegrating should be avoided as much as possible. Give each other space.

Production employees, lorry drivers and commercial employees have individual workstations where they can keep enough distance. Points of attention in compliance with that rule for them are in particular moments of consultation, instruction and/or handing over work.

Office employees and employees in the sorting department are not allowed to work together at the workplace. Keeping sufficient distance between the individual workplaces is mandatory. Not too many office workers in one room are allowed. And preferably one person per workstation in the sorting department. Workstations where sufficient distance can be kept there, a maximum of 2 people may work together. Wearing a mouth mask is mandatory and employees at those workstations most rotate regularly. This ensures that people do not stand together for long periods of time.  

Places such as entrance halls/ corridors, canteens, kitchens, changing rooms and sanitary facilities may not be used by large groups of people at the same time. Managers shall ensure that these collective facilities are only used in rotation by smaller groups of persons and/or individuals.

Meetings are held online as much as possible and/or with as few people as possible. This with due observance of sufficient distance from each other and preferably in the shortest possible time.   

2. Maintain a proper hygiene standard for yourself and your workplace.

Wash your hands regularly and keep your workplace clean.

Clean surfaces with an extra risk of transfer very frequently. Examples include door handles, (water) taps and toilet seats.

If you register the start or end of your working time in the time registration system, clean the spots where you made contact with the device afterwards for the next user.

 

Do not use the same cutlery and crockery as your colleague and after use put it directly in the dishwasher or wash it yourself immediately.

Use items in your workplace, the work equipment, as much as possible exclusively yourself. If items, work equipment or a workplace must be exchanged, wear gloves and/or clean them first, especially the items with an extra risk of transfer. Examples include office supplies, keyboard and mouse, photo camera, download terminal and download key. The handlebar or control panel of coffee machines, vending machines, (technical and household) tools, machines, lorries and/or other equipment.

Do not interchange PPE (such as mouth masks, hearing protection, gloves, goggles, etc.) and work wear.

Be careful with the transfer of papers/documents etc. from person to person.  Avoid physical contact with the other person. Put the item down first and the other person picks it up.This is the safest thing to do. 

B. In case of virus symptoms and/or illness of the employees and/or their family members:

• The current situation regarding Covid-19 is primarily the responsibility of governments, not employers. The privacy legislation therefore remains in force as usual.
• A number of things are not allowed and therefore do not happen in our companies. This includes: registering medical data of employees and/or taking an employee's temperature and/or do a fever scan.
• The employer may not deny employees access to the workfloor on the basis of a suspicion of contamination. However, in such a case, the employer will insist on a medical determination in order to have certainty and to be able to guarantee the safety of the other employees.
• Employees who suspect infection without (all) symptoms, employees who are not sick and/or have (potentially) infected family members, should seek medical assistance at their own discretion in line with the instructions issued by the relevant government if they deem this necessary. In addition, it is up to them to decide whether or not to be tested. Precautionary measures in the workplace can usually be realized in consultation with the employer (insofar as they are not already applicable).
• With an employee who shows all symptoms of Covid-19, the employer consults to take appropriate measures. In any case, the employee should get tested as soon as possible and wait for the result of the test at home. Depending on the severity and individual work environment, it may be decided that the employee stays at home or has limited contact with others. The latter can be done for example by temporary adjustment of the workplace, working days and/or working hours.           
• An employee who has a positive result of the Corona test (and/or a housemate of that employee from whom the employee cannot adequately isolate himself) must be denied access to the company within the framework of the employer's duty of prevention. As soon as this person is virus free and/or can demonstrate a negative Corona test for at least 24 hours, the employee can immediately resume work. 
• An employee who has a negative result of a Corona test should immediately resume work as long as this employee is not too sick to work.  
• An employee who, due to preventive measures by a company and/or school, is unable or unable to come to work for housemates should contact the employer in order to reach a workable solution in consultation.                                                                                   

The employer's representatives in the above text are: members of the board of directors, depot managers, employees of the human resources department and other managers such as department heads. They must take into account the privacy laws and therefore follow all contact with employees on this subject in strict confidentiality.

C. The policy for visitors of the companies of CVB Ecologistics group:

For visitors such as lorry drivers and other persons who visit our companies, CVB Ecologistics group applies the following.

• All visitors must first report to reception upon arrival. This also applies to regular visitors such as contactpersons from customers, suppliers, mechanics, transporters and also fellow employees from other business locations.
• The office worker always determines as quickly as possible whether the visiting person is indeed at the right address. If not, this person is immediately requested to leave the company premises again. 
• If a visitor has or appears to have health complaints corresponding to the symptoms of COVID-19, that person will be refused access to the company and premises.
• Employees and visitors always keep a large distance from each other. 
• In small (reception) areas one person at a time is allowed. In larger (reception) areas, a maximum of the number of persons that fits is allowed, while making sure a distance between persons of at least 1 meter can be guaranteed.
• Visitors are informed in advance and/or immediately upon arrival of the Covid-19 protocol applicable at the business locations of CVB Ecologistics group. This can be done verbally on arrival and/or in advance by sending this protocol to them by our employees. 
• Visitors register their presence on a list with a pen an sufficient distance away from the office workers. The pen is cleaned regularly.
• Visitors who are too early are directed by office workers to a secluded room to wait there. If that space is not available in the company, that person has to wait outside at the entrance or in the car. Lorry drivers should wait outside the company premises in their lorry until it is their turn to be loaded or unloaded.
• Office workers ask drivers who come to load or unload for the reference / match number and verify this. Office workers accept as few papers as possible from drivers. If necessary, they view them remotely. 
• Physical contact between employees and drivers should always be avoided when exchanging documents and matters such as loading/unloading instruction forms, transport documents, seals etc. Depositing the item first and then being picked up by the other person is the most secure procedure.
• Visitors and lorry drivers may only enter the company under the supervision or strict instruction of employees and remain at their designated location in the company during the visit.
• Drivers always stay at a sufficient distance from the production employee during the loading or unloading of their lorry. 
• Private individuals that bring in waste paper, textiles or plastic preferably unload their cars themselves at a sufficient distance from, but controllable by, our employees. This after first reporting their presence to the office workers.
• At company locations of CVB Ecologistics group, where this is possible, visitors and drivers are allowed to use the toilets. Showers are only available for use by our own employees until further notice. 

Visitors who do not comply with the above instructions will be denied access to all business locations of CVB Ecologistics group.  

D. Employees of CVB Ecologistics group visiting work relations:

Employees of group CVB Ecologistics who visit external companies and/or persons inform themselves of the applicable protocol regarding Covid-19 and strictly follow these rules during the visit.   

Employees and third parties who identify (potential) risk situations at a business location of CVB Ecologistics group and/or act in violation of this protocol by an employee are requested to report this in writing to Linda van Berkel via the e-mail address: linda@cvbecologistics.com so that this can be followed up immediately.