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We had an interesting safety speaker at the recent FGIA Virtual Fall Conference. Michael Cook, Corporate Safety Director for Oldcastle BuildingEnvelope, shared what his company has done during the spread of COVID-19 to adapt workspaces and ensure employees’ safety in the pandemic.

Here are some tips Cook shared:

  1. Stay current on advances in COVID safety devices and strategies which have evolved since the onset of the pandemic
  2. Offer more paid leave so workers do not feel pressured to come to work sick
  3. Provide facial coverings along with other standard plant PPE
  4. Put up signage and use floor markers to remind workers to practice social distancing
  5. Stagger start times and use touchless time clocks
  6. Conduct temperature checks and use screening questions immediately after employees punch in at the time clock
  7. Increase cleaning schedules, especially in high-contact areas
  8. Find ways to minimize interactions with others on the plant floor
  9. Increase workspaces between employees and consider using physical markers, like trash cans, between workstations to remind workers to keep their distance
  10. Document all you are doing to keep workers safe in case OSHA comes knocking


If you are already doing similar things to take care of workers, be sure to make mention of that in all job postings to assure applicants they will be safe on the plant floor at your company.

Michael also shared guidance as to how to determine when a COVID case must be reported to OSHA as an occupational incident and what documentation to maintain. He recommended a checklist and provided a flowchart within the presentation to help companies navigate the steps in determining if a COVID case is work-related.

An article in Window & Door indicated that the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) offered similar recommendations during a recent webinar. We want to see what our other member companies are doing to ensure workers’ safety. What are some of your company’s innovative safety practices during this time? Share them in the comments below!