According to the Outbreak Management Team, corona has reached the endemic phase and employers now claim to approach corona like other diseases, for example flu, without special measures.
The virus is now officially part of normal daily life and isolation and large-scale testing is no longer necessary, according to the OMT. The team says it counts on people’s common sense if they get complaints about contact with others. For example, in care for the elderly and in contact with vulnerable groups, it remains important to strictly follow the hygiene rules in the event of infections. Also, little is still known about the long-term impact of Covid-19, which is under further investigation.
Lifting measures
From now on, employers will approach the corona virus in the same way as other business risks, employers’ associations VNO-NCW and MKB-Nederland say to ANP news agency in response to the new corona advice from the OMT. Last spring, the last measure was already lifted and face masks were no longer mandatory at Dutch airports. According to the employers’ organizations, entering the endemic phase means that there will be no new measures.
Chance of dangerous variant small
The OMT is still a little cautious about possible new variants. ‘For example, it cannot be ruled out that variants with deviating characteristics, for example a higher pathogenic potential, arise as previously seen for the alpha, beta and delta variants. However, given the dominance and large-scale distribution of a wide range of omikron (sub)variants, the likelihood of this happening is considered low at this stage of the pandemic,’ writes Jaap van Dissel in the advice.
Reporting sick with corona / flu
It is not yet known exactly how employers will deal with the virus from now on. There were sector-specific rules that established how best to deal with basic rules and additional measures to prevent the spread in each industry. A spokesperson for the organizations says that employers will probably follow the OMT advice. ‘Corona is approached like other diseases, without special measures. As with the flu, for example, employees with corona can report sick.’
