Employers can ask workers who report feeling sick or call sick questions about their symptoms to determine if they have covid-19, the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission said in an updated guide.
The guidance issued on Tuesday by the agency updates previously issued technical assistance.
The guide also allows employers to measure employees’ body temperature, although “as with any medical information, the fact that an employee had a fever or other symptoms would be subject to the (Americans with Disabilities Act) confidentiality requirements.”
Other tips in the guide include:
-
The ADA does not disturb employers who follow the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or the recommendations of the public health authorities, and employers should be happy to do so.
3; -
An employer can send home an employee with covid-19 or symptoms of the disease.
-
Employers can follow the advice of the CDC and state and local public health authorities regarding the information needed to allow an employee to return to the workplace after visiting a designated location, whether for business or personal reasons.
-
Because the “extraordinary” circumstances of the pandemic may delay discussions about inquiries and provide housing for employees with known disabilities that are not related to the pandemic, employers and employees are encouraged to use “temporary solutions” to enable employees to continue working as much as possible. “
-
Employers can screen applicants for symptoms of covid-19 after submitting a conditional job offer, “as long as it does so for all incoming employees in the same type of job.”
-
Employers can perform medical examinations after an employer has submitted a conditional job offer, although they should be aware that some people with covid-19 do not have a fever.
-
An employer can postpone the start date of an applicant who has covid-19 or its symptoms.
-
Employers may withdraw a job offer when it needs the applicant to start immediately, but the individual has covid-19 or its symptoms.
Source link