Coronavirus Update for April 14: How to safely visit campus as a nonessential employee

Dear Colleagues,

While most of us are working from home, critical on-site personnel continue their vital work on campus, maintaining life safety and security. This small group of employees can only complete their work while on campus. They have been formally notified of their status. 

If you have not been notified by your supervisor that you are critical on-site personnel, you are not approved to work from campus, and you should stay home. If you believe that you should be on the approved list of critical on-site personnel, please discuss your request with your supervisor. Human Resources will work with ICS to approve any employees who need to work on campus.  

Non-critical staff may need to make rare, brief visits to campus for supplies or equipment for their work. For each visit, employees must contact their supervisor or dean, and complete the On-Campus Visit Reporting form.  

If you are not in one of these categories, you should not be in a campus facility for any reason.  

When you are on campus: 

  • Do not offer access to anyone into any building at any time. Everyone who is authorized is able to access their building.  

  • Do not prop open doors at any time for any reason. 

  • Do not enter a building on campus unless it is urgent or critical and you are authorized to do so. 

Starting today, when University Police find an unlocked and/or propped door that should be secured, the entire area that is compromised by that breach will be cleared and the door re-secured. Employees in the building at that time will be evacuated, using appropriate social distancing measures, and only those personnel who have key or fob access, and are authorized to be on site, may re-enter.  

These steps may seem stringent. In ordinary circumstances we wouldn’t need them. But custodial staff must know where people are on campus so that they can disinfect and sanitize consistent with CDC guidelines on infection control.  And we must keep our critical on-site staff safe from possible infection as they work.  

Together, we can keep flattening the curve, and keep our community and co-workers healthy. 

With appreciation for your partnership, 

Melynda Huskey, ICS 

Sue Sullivan, Environmental Health and Safety 

Chyerl Wolfe-Lee, Human Resources 

 

The Incident Command System team at Western has established three goals for all of our preparation and response to COVID-19:  to protect life safety and minimize the spread of the coronavirus illness, to maintain – as much as possible – the continuity of Western’s operations, and to communicate with our communities as fully as possible.

Western's coronavirus information website features Frequently Asked Questions; has links to campus, regional and national resources; an archive of campus messaging and media stories about coronavirus; a new toll-free campus coronavirus information line, and more. The site is a living document, and will get frequent updates as the coronavirus situation evolves.