Factory Owners Advised on Emergency Measures against COVID-19

by Zulfick Farzan 14-10-2020 | 10:14 AM

Colombo (News 1st); Minister of Health, Pavithra Wanniarachchi warned all factory management to strictly adhere to health guidelines and precautions as mandatory, enforcing all elaborate procedures as advised by health authorities.

She urged all garment factory owners across the island and in Free Trade Zones, and company management representatives to ensure their employees are examined at least thrice a day for fever and are not at all exposed to outsiders in society as much as possible.

The meeting took place at the National Operation Centre for Prevention of COVID-19 Outbreak (NOCPCO).

The emergency meeting closely evaluated present developments in-depth and discussed to launch of strategic operational methods to curb its transmission to the outside society.

These measures include:

- Conduct of temperature testing on employees at least thrice a day.

- Close inspection of their places of accommodation.

- Close contacts, frequenting public places.

- Constant change of working hours and shifts in factories to ease congestion in transport systems, the supply of meals, etc.

- Immediate update of the right addresses of those employees with necessary other particulars for the facilitation of contact-tracing.

A Naval operational room in the Biyagama and Katunayake zones would conduct PCR tests inside the zones, enabling all to undergo these tests free of charge as another alternative arrangement to cut down the rush for such tests.

The factory management was advised to strictly isolate factory areas and restrict the entry of outsiders to their compounds to prevent transmission of the virus.

They were also instructed to liaise closely with respective MOH authorities, Public Health Inspectors, Epidemiologists, and so on to receive all updates and necessary instructions.