The health and safety of our employees, customers and communities is our highest priority. We are constantly monitoring the evolving COVID-19 pandemic and following guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the World Health Organization (WHO) as well as internal health experts. Our focus is to ensure the safety of our employees as well as the customers and vendors with whom we collaborate.
Over the course of 35 years we have encountered and mastered many challenges and are convinced that we will overcome this too.
Globally, OCS Corporate Crisis Management Team is looking after the following:
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Visibility of the business impacts developing in, or across countries and regions.
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Guidance on potential broader consequences of the outbreak should they have a global impact, and
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COVID-19 preventative measures and response guidance to support our local response plans.
Locally, every country has reviewed their local emergency response plans, assessed them for business continuity, and activated their plans in alignment with local authorities.
TRAVEL RESTRICTIONS
In order to prevent spread of COVID-19, we’ve implemented global travel restrictions until further notice. All business-critical travel requires assessment and approval from executive leadership. We have placed additional controls on domestic travel to further minimise exposure, and allow only if it’s absolutely necessary.
SELF-QUARANTINE
Following the CDC guidelines, we have recommended a 14-day self-quarantine for any employees and crew members returning from international travel. These guidelines include:
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Remaining at home, except to visit healthcare providers
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Avoiding public areas, public transport, and taxis/ride-sharing.
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In the event that any employee, crew members or a family member reports symptoms of COVID-19, we will provide them with comprehensive guidance, reflecting CDC expertise.
SOCIAL DISTANCING
OCS employees have been advised to implement social distancing where it’s practical to do so. CDC recommends social distancing in the workplace and at home. At work, specifically, this means limiting in-person group gatherings at all OCS locations and sites. Our employees and crew members have been instructed to use video conferencing and voice calls as an alternative.
We are constantly available for our clients and ensure all concerns are addressed. Instead of in-person customer meetings, we are using video-conferencing applications to continue the business. While we have implemented social distancing, OCS is also educating our staff about the myths associated with COVID-19, as communicated on the WHO mythbuster section». To keep our employees and customers safe, we are sharing information to let facts, not fear, drive decisions.
REMOTE WORK
All employees have been asked to work from home if they are able. We’ve provided instructions to employees about how to continue business from home, and our IT team have set up the appropriate infrastructure and licensing to enable remote work.
BUSINESS CONTINUITY PLANNING
We are reviewing our critical processes and strategies to evaluate the two most common threats during a pandemic: 1) loss of people, and 2) interruptions of supply chains. Based on this information and other emerging threats, we are refining our mitigation strategies to reduce the potential impact of a disruption if these risks become a reality.
INFORMATION EXCHANGE
Our crisis communication strategies have been enacted to keep our employees aware of the latest developments of the pandemic and how they impact our operations. As part of our communications strategy, the following are the strategic ways we’re keeping employees informed:
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Emergency response communications for employees and customers
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Social media (Facebook»/ LinkedIn») posts sharing our actions and precautions taken
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Company Intranet (WeConnect») providing all required articles and videos regarding COVID-19 and how to efficiently work from home.
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Wallpapers with the latest COVID-19 information from the CDC, and WHO.
