Welcome back,
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My apologies for the lack of newsletters over the last week. Issues with our backend had our email sending program down. Unfortunately, we also had to restore our email list from a few months ago; as such, some of you may have unsubscribed and are now receiving this email; if that is the case, I sincerely apologize, the unsubscribe link at the bottom of this email is functional, and I would request that you please use that to remove yourself from the list.
For everyone one else, I'm excited to get back to work and help you all grow your business and find success in your endeavours. A quick thanks also to Republic, which is sponsoring this email which gave us the funds to get our system back up and running. Very grateful!
Unfortunately, today's topic is necessary but shitty as we will discuss how you should react to Monkeypox being declared a public health emergency.
Onwards and upwards,
Liam
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Background
On July 23, 2022, the World Health Organization declared Monkeypox a public health emergency of international concern. Following this announcement, many democratic states declared it a state emergency, including California and New York. Last week, President Biden declared Monkeypox a national health emergency.
While this doesn't immediately place legal obligations on employers, as seen with Covid-19, this is just a step away from situations where employers could be liable if they don't take the precautions necessary to protect the health of their employees.
Monkeypox spreads differently from Covid-19, and it's not an airborne disease. This means that you usually need close, personal skin-to-skin contact to spread the disease.
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The Law
Here are the following measures that you should consider for your company:
- Safety Prevention Plan: Set rules around congregating in one place, hugging at work, washing hands, disinfecting work areas, etc. These basic precautions can prevent the disease from spreading in your office.
- Isolation Policy: Set an isolation policy so that anyone who is ill or has come into contact with someone sick can come to work. Outline this policy clearly and set reporting requirements.
- Anti Discrimination Reminders: A key narrative around Monkeypox is its prevalence amongst members of the LGBTQ+ community. You should focus on ensuring any actions you take aren't discriminatory to that community (this opens up potential discrimination suits) and try and limit or remove any stigma surrounding this disease in your office so that employees feel comfortable coming forward if they are sick to avoid hurting others.
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Takeaways
It sucks that we are going through this again as we still deal with the fallout from Covid-19. This newsletter isn't intended to ring alarm bells, but instead, it's about making sure you take some basic actions so that you can avoid disease in your office and can limit your liability if this does end up being something more significant than currently expected.
I hope everyone stays safe and healthy. These are three basic steps you can take that can save you significant time and money down the line.
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This newsletter (or any other content provided by Law4Startups) is not legal, financial, or tax advice. We are simply providing legal information and collating news from around the world. We recommend that you consult an attorney before making any legal decisions. We do not make any representations and take no responsibility for your actions based on this information.
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