Algoma Steel Inc. president Michael McQuade has advised employees of precautions taken after an employee of a supplier tested positive for COVID-19.
“We have confirmed the individual travelled to the Soo from another province and was last at Algoma on March 12, 2020,” McQuade wrote in a letter to employees on Wednesday.
“Algoma Public Health is advised the likelihood of transmission is low, however, out of an abundance of caution, we have notified those employees who were in contact with the individual and asked them to stay home and self-monitor for the remainder of the 14-day window,” McQuade advises.
The letter also advised staff that an employee who has been off work since March 19 has been tested for the virus and is awaiting results.
While health officials say the risk of transmission is low, McQuade said the company “asked those employees and a small number of contractor personnel who had close contact with that individual not to come to work pending the outcome of the employee’s test results.
“Any work and common areas occupied by this employee are being fully sanitized.”
APH’s first confirmed case, reported on March 17, involved a woman in her 50s who returned to Algoma District on March 15 from the United States. The woman developed respiratory symptoms and advised Algoma Public Health on March 16. She was tested later that day at Sault Area Hospital.
Precautions taken by the steelmaker include:
- discontinuing business travel
- restricting visitors to the site
- introducing screening and social-distancing protocols for essential service providers including truck drivers and couriers
- implementing a policy in accordance with public health directives for employees and contractor personnel who are either returning from international travel or who fall under a self-isolation protocol
- Introducing staggered shift starts, lunches, and breaks to reduce congestion in welfare facilities and lunchrooms
- transitioning paper processes online
- facilitating work-from-home arrangements
- reallocating work stations to provide for adequate spacing (minimum two meters) and limited pulpit occupancy
- directing teams to hold meetings via teleconference and WebEx and facilitated online training delivery
- augmenting sanitation services, ensuring adequate inventory of cleaning supplies
- providing cleaning supplies for regular disinfection of pulpits and asked that this practice extends to crane cabs, mobile equipment, and other work stations
- introducing an employee hotline where employees can call, 24/7, with any questions or concerns they may have
“We understand these developments may cause anxiety and we want to remind Algoma Steel employees that we are in regular contact with Algoma Public Health. We have robust safety measures in place to prevent the spread of this virus and to ensure the safety and wellbeing of everyone at our workplace,” McQuade said in his letter to employees.