COVID and Respiratory Tract Infection Work Guidelines
Do any of these apply to you?
Not sure whether you should be staying away from work?
You have symptoms of a respiratory tract infection
Go to Page 2
You have tested positive for Covid
Go to Page 3
A member of your household or overnight contact has tested positive for Covid
Go to Page 4
If none of these apply to you then you should continue to work as usual
N.B. There is separate guidance for people who have been informed by the NHS that they are at highest risk of becoming seriously unwell and who might be eligible for new COVID-19 treatments.
You have symptoms of a respiratory tract infection e.g:
Continuous cough
High temperature, fever or chills
Loss of, or change in, your normal sense of taste or smell shortness of breath - unexplained tiredness, lack of energy
Muscle aches or pains that are not due to exercise
Not wanting to eat or not feeling hungry
Headache that is unusual or longer lasting than usual Sore throat, stuffy or runny nose
Diarrhoea, feeling sick or being sick
If you’re at home do not come into work and inform your line manager. If you are in work, Inform your line manager and go home immediately.
Try to stay at home and avoid contact with other people, until you no longer have a high temperature (if you had one) or until you no longer feel unwell.
However, if you work with clinically vulnerable individuals you should have a discussion with your manager who will risk assess you before agreeing you can return to work.
You have tested positive for Covid
If you’re at home do not come into work and inform your line manager. If you are in work, Inform your line manager and go home immediately.
Stay at home and avoid contact with other people for 5 days after the day you took your test.
At the end of this period, if you still have a high temperature or feel unwell, continue to remain away from work until you feel well enough to resume normal activities and you no longer have a high temperature if you had one.
However, if you work with clinically vulnerable individuals you should have a discussion with your manager who will risk assess you and may ask you to stay away from work for up to 10 days or will redeploy you so that you do not come into contact with clinically vulnerable individuals.
A staff member has a household or overnight contact (i.e. they stayed overnight in the same household) who has tested positive for Covid
Does the staff member have respiratory tract infection symptoms?
Follow advice on Page 2
Advise manager who will risk assess you and may:
a) Redeploy staff working with people we support to lower risk areas
b) Suggest staff who do not work with the people we support should work from home
c) Suggest ways that the staff member can limit close contact with other people especially in crowded, enclosed or poorly ventilated spaces