WORKPLACES & ORGANISATIONS - COVID-19 INFORMATION PACK FOR THE AUCKLAND REGION What to do if someone with COVID-19 has been on your premises - ARPHS
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WORKPLACES & ORGANISATIONS COVID-19 INFORMATION PACK FOR THE AUCKLAND REGION What to do if someone with COVID-19 has been on your premises ___________________ ORANGE SETTING - COVID-19 PROTECTION FRAMEWORK
This pack is intended for use by:
Businesses - retail (short exposure and low risk) – where you have a customer or
staff member with COVID-19
Businesses – seated hospitality, gyms, theatres/cinemas and beauty (greater
exposure, closer proximity, medium risk) – where you have a customer or staff
member with COVID-19
Businesses – non-seated hospitality (high exposure, close proximity, high
movement - high risk) – where you have a customer or staff member with COVID-
19
Workplaces – when you have a staff member with COVID-19 on site
Events run by public, faith based, social, cultural or sporting organisations – when
someone with COVID-19 attends an event/service/practice
Events at private gatherings - when someone with COVID-19 attends
This guidance applies while the Auckland region is in the Orange level of the COVID-19 protection
framework. It is supplementary to national guidance produced by Worksafe and the Ministry of
Business, Innovation & Employment.
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Sections
1. What happens when someone with COVID-19 has been on your premises .................................. 4
2. Advice for low risk businesses and workplaces – i.e. retail............................................................. 5
3. Advice for medium risk businesses i.e. seated restaurants, gyms, cinemas & beauty settings ..... 6
4. Advice for high risk businesses i.e. non-seated hospitality venues such as bars and nightclubs ... 8
5. Attendee at an event or private gathering ...................................................................................10
6. Employee or contractor with COVID-19 in a workplace ...............................................................12
7. Step by step guide to contact tracing............................................................................................13
8. What Close Contacts need to do: testing and self-isolation .........................................................15
Appendix I: Flow charts for identifying close contacts in different environments ...............................16
Appendix II: Forms for recording close contacts ..................................................................................23
Appendix III: Template messaging for staff, customers and members who are casual contacts ........31
Appendix IV: Frequently asked questions ............................................................................................33
Appendix V: Management plan for your workplace or organisation ...................................................36
Appendix VI: Getting prepared and reducing the risk of COVID-19 .....................................................37
______________________
This guidance is to be used in the Auckland region when a COVID-19 case has been on your premises or
attends an event while infectious.
It does not apply if an individual is identified as a close contact because they have been exposed to COVID-
19 from a household member or at a separate event.
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1. What happens when someone with COVID-19 has been on
your premises
Contact tracing – what your organisation will need to do
If you have someone with COVID-19 on your premises you may need to take action, if they were
infectious while on site.
What you need to do depends on the type of business or organisation you are, as this determines
the level of risk of COVID-19 being passed on to others. These have been categorised as follows:
low risk businesses (e.g. retail) – where contact with others is brief and there are
preventative measures like mask use and physical distancing.
medium risk businesses (e.g. seated hospitality) – where there is likely to be prolonged or
close contact with staff or between those on site, but customers can be traced, or generally
remain in the same area and with the same people;
high risk businesses (e.g. non-seated hospitality indoors) - where there is likely to be
intermittent mask use, close or prolonged contact with staff or between customers, and
those on-site are moving around the venue freely;
a workplace which is not public facing – i.e. an office, warehouse or construction site;
public events (i.e. run by a faith based, sports, cultural or public organisation) or private
gatherings.
Exposure events, cases and contacts
An ‘exposure event’ is when an infectious person was on site and potentially able to
transmit the virus to others nearby.
The person with COVID-19 is often referred to as ‘the case’.
Anyone they interacted with or were near will be referred to as ‘contacts’.
o People with a higher risk of exposure are called ‘close contacts’. These individuals
need to self-isolate and get tested.
o People who were near the person, but not in close proximity, are called ‘casual
contacts’. They do not need to take any action unless symptoms develop.
While an exposure event can be concerning, especially if the virus is the Omicron variant, it
does not automatically mean that you will have wide-spread transmission. Having effective
preventative measures in place (like masks, physical distancing, and vaccinated customers
and staff) will be critical to reducing the risk of COVID-19 transmission.
What happens to the person with COVID-19?
The case will isolate at home or in a managed isolation facility, and will have regular health
checks. They will be provided with support to stay at home if required.
They cannot return to your workplace or premises until they have been cleared by the
health team managing them. They’ll need to isolate for at least 14 days.
They will not be tested again as a test cannot determine if someone is still infectious once
they’ve had COVID-19. A health professional will assess this and tell them when they can
return to normal life, including their place of work.
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2. Advice for low risk businesses and workplaces – i.e. retail
Low risk environments
These include:
Supermarkets, dairies and petrol stations
‘click and collect’ services and takeaways
standard retail or service interactions (less than 15 minutes)
Exposure events in these settings are considered low risk as interactions are generally short and
involve preventative measures like physical distancing and masks.
How you may learn of the case/exposure event
If the case is a customer you will not necessarily be notified of the exposure event by contact
tracers, as it is likely to be low risk.
Sometimes exposure events are added to the ‘Locations of Interest’ website. Everyone is
encouraged to check the site regularly, including business owners.
Customers or staff members may receive a notification via the COVID-19 tracer app if they
scanned in. They should follow the advice in the notification.
What you need to do if the case is a staff member
If the case is a staff member you should follow the workplace advice in section 6.
What you need to do if the case is a customer/member of the public
You do not need to take any action. There is no requirement to alert customers or carry out any
special / deep cleaning. Staff should watch for symptoms and get tested if any develop.
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3. Advice for medium risk businesses i.e. seated restaurants,
gyms, pools, cinemas and beauty settings
Medium risk environments
These include places where customers or members stay longer or are in close proximity with staff or
each other, however are generally seated or stay within certain areas that can be contact traced. For
example:
seated hospitality, such as dine-in cafes or seated restaurants, where customers generally
stay in one area
seated entertainment venues, such as cinemas or theatres
gyms, pools and indoor sports venues
beauty and hairdressing
Information on the criteria used by public health staff when assessing the risk of COVID-19 transmission
at different types of premises is available at appendix item I.
How you may learn of the case being on site/exposure event
The case will be told they have COVID-19 by their doctor or a public health team.
Contact tracers may get in touch to alert you (if they have been told about the exposure
event from the case directly).
The customer or staff member may tell you directly.
You or your staff might be alerted via the COVID-19 tracer app.
Your business may be listed as a Location of Interest, however you may not receive advance
warning of this.
You will not be told about a case if they were not infectious while on your premises, or if they have
not told contact tracers about this exposure.
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What you need to do if the case was a staff member
If the person with COVID-19 is a staff member you should follow the workplace advice in section 6.
What you need to do if the case was a customer/member of the public
If someone with COVID-19 visits your premises or attends your event during their infectious period,
then anyone who was there at the same time could be at risk of developing COVID-19 too.
You will need to:
follow any advice given to you by contact tracing teams or public health.
keep the name and details of the case confidential. This is private health information and at
no point should you disclose this information to others.
identify key areas the case was if possible, and what they were doing.
identify who was in close proximity to the case, and provide their details to contact tracing
teams so they can give them further advice.
potentially alert others who were also on site to watch for symptoms.
make sure any staff who are close contacts do not come back to work until they have been
given clearance to do so by public health.
Please see section 7: step by step guide to contact tracing on what is required from your business or
organisation.
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4. Advice for high risk businesses i.e. non-seated hospitality
venues such as bars and nightclubs
High risk environments
These include places where customers or members:
- are indoors
- are not seated
- stay longer or are in close proximity with staff and each other
- will potentially be shouting and / or singing
- aren’t wearing masks the whole time they are on site (e.g. when eating, drinking or smoking)
International evidence shows venues such as this pose a high risk for COVID-19 transmission.
Information on the criteria used by public health staff when assessing the risk of COVID-19
transmission at different types of premises is available at appendix item I.
How you may learn of the case being on site/exposure event
The case will be told they have COVID-19 by their doctor or a public health team.
Contact tracers will attempt to alert you via any contact methods you list publicly (e.g. email
address, phone or website contact form).
The customer or staff member may tell you directly.
You or your staff might be alerted via the COVID-19 tracer app.
Your business may be listed as a Location of Interest, however you may not receive advance
warning of this.
You will not be told about a case if they were not infectious while on your premises, or if they have
not told contact tracers about this exposure.
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What you need to do if the case was a customer/member of the public
If a customer with COVID-19 visits your premises or attends your event during their infectious
period, anyone who was there at the same time will most likely be categorised as a close contact,
particularly if it is an indoor venue.
This is because there is a high risk of COVID-19 transmission, and it will be difficult to specifically
identify who was near the case while they were on your premises.
You will need to:
follow any advice given to you by contact tracing teams or public health.
keep the name and details of the case confidential if given to you. This is private health
information and at no point should you disclose this information to others.
identify which of your staff were on site at the same time – they are also likely to be
considered close contacts.
alert the public about the exposure event via your public communication channels (e.g.
website, social media)
make sure any staff who are close contacts do not come back to work until they have been
given clearance to do so by public health.
Please see section 7: step by step guide to contact tracing on what is required from your business or
organisation.
What you need to do if the case was a staff member
You can follow guidance in section 6.
If the staff member was wearing a mask, only other staff in the same bubble will be considered close
contacts. Customers will be considered casual contacts.
If the staff member was not wearing a mask and working indoors all customers will also be close
contacts.
If staff do not work in bubbles all other staff they came into contact with will be close contacts. This
includes those they were with for more than 15 minutes, or ate, drank or smoked with.
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5. Attendee at an event or private gathering
Event or setting types
This category includes events and places run by public organisations and private gatherings. For
example:
faith based services and events
weddings, funerals and other private gatherings such as an indoor party
public events run by local government or other organisations
private sports groups and clubs
cultural events
In many of these events or settings, people attend for a prolonged period, have face to face
interactions, and may remove masks to participate in activities, eat or drink. This means they are
likely to be higher risk.
How you may learn of the case being on site / exposure event
The case will be told they have COVID-19 by their doctor or a public health team.
Contact tracers may get in touch to alert you, if they have been told about the exposure
event from the case directly.
The attendee or staff member may tell you directly.
You or your staff might be alerted via the COVID-19 tracer app.
Your site/club/premises may be listed as a Location of Interest, however you may not
receive advance warning of this.
You will not be told about a case if they were not infectious while on your premises, or if they have
not told contact tracers about this exposure event.
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LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 10What you need to do if the case was a staff member or contractor
If the person with COVID-19 was a staff member, follow the workplace advice in section 5.
What you need to do if the case was an attendee or member
If someone with COVID-19 visits your premises or attends your event during their infectious period,
then anyone who was there at the same time could be at risk of developing COVID-19 too.
You will need to:
follow any advice given to you by contact tracing teams or public health.
keep confidential the name and details of the case. This is private health information and at
no point should you disclose this information to others.
identify areas the case was, and what they were doing.
identify who was in close proximity to the case, and provide their details to contact tracing
teams so they can give them further advice.
potentially alert others who were also on site to watch for symptoms.
make sure any staff who are close contacts do not come back to work until they have been
given clearance to do so by public health.
Please see section 7: step by step guide to contact tracing on what is required from your business or
organisation.
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LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 116. Employee or contractor with COVID-19 in a workplace
If you have had an employee, contractor or visitor with COVID-19 on your premises during their
infectious period, then anyone who was there at the same time could be at risk of developing
COVID-19 too. The name and details of the case is private health information and should be kept
confidential.
How you may learn of the case being on site
The case will be told they have COVID-19 by their doctor or a public health team.
The case may then inform you of their diagnosis before a contact tracer gets in touch. You
can ask your employee to confirm they had a positive test result.
A contact tracer will contact you about the case, and will provide the case’s infectious
period.
You won’t be informed about a case if they were not infectious while on your premises, or if
they have not told contact tracers about this exposure.
What you need to do if the case was on site while infectious
You will need to:
follow any advice given to you by contact tracing teams or public health.
identify areas the case was, and what they were doing.
identify who was in close proximity to the case, and provide their details to contact tracing
teams so they can give them further advice.
potentially alert others who were also on site to watch for symptoms.
make sure any staff who are close contacts do not come back to work until they have been
given clearance to do so by the team checking their symptoms.
Please see section 7: step by step guide to contact tracing on what is required from your business or
organisation.
COVID-19 INFORMATION PACK
LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 127. Step by step guide to contact tracing
Step 1: Identifying exposure events
You may be told the name of the case, and if not, that someone who is a case was at your premises
and their infectious period (this is when they were at risk of giving COVID-19 to others). It’s
important you do not disclose this to others.
You then need to:
I. If asked, confirm whether or not they were on site during their infectious period, and what
times e.g. for a staff case. Contact tracers may already have this information and won’t
need you to verify this if it is someone you can’t identify.
II. Identify areas on the premises they may have been during these times
Focus on spaces they were in or were likely in for more than 15 minutes, or where they
could have had direct face to face contact with others. For example:
- in a workplace this may be in the lunchroom, their desk, the warehouse etc.
- for a restaurant, this may be the indoor and outdoor dining areas if the customer
was in both spaces.
- for a fitness business, this may be on the gym floor or fitness classes.
III. List out these spaces, the times the case was there, and what they were doing
- Use the Public Health Risk Assessment Form and Collection of Contact Details form
in Appendix II.
- You need to use a new sheet for each different time/place of exposure.
- Answer the questions about the room/area and what the case and others were
doing there. Each of these spaces may have a different risk assessment depending
on size of space, whether it was indoor or outdoor, whether people were wearing
masks, and what they were doing.
2. Identifying and notifying contacts
Once you’ve identified these places and the times the case was there, you need to:
I. Using the same form - identify and list anyone that shared the space with them
- List anyone who was there at the same time, such as employees, organisation
members, contractors (e.g. cleaners), customers, or other visitors. Provide as much
detail as you can, filling out each of the columns.
- You can find details for visitors/customers from the contact tracing tools you’re
using on your premises.
- If it’s not possible to provide contact details, or be fully confident in who was at the
premises, it’s more likely your premises will be made a location of interest, and / or
the COVID-19 tracer app will be used to contact attendees so it is important that
mandatory QR scanning is enforced on your premises.
II. Provide this form to the contact tracing team. Contact tracers will review the Risk
Assessment Form, ask you questions if needed, and then tell you who (if anyone) is a
close contact that you need to be aware of.
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LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 13Help with managing close contacts
- Close contacts need to self-isolate and get tested. This means they need to stay
home and not come to work. They will be given this advice by contact tracers.
- You will need to send any close contacts home if they are still on site, and make sure
they don’t return to work until they’ve finished self-isolating.
3. Informing others
Others on your site will be considered casual contacts if they weren’t near the case but were
there at the same time. If they do not have symptoms they can come to your premises as usual.
I. Contacting casual contacts
- If asked, you should inform casual contacts, letting them know they need to watch
for symptoms and get tested if unwell.
- There is a template letter you can send out to your workplace in Appendix III – Letter
for Casual Contacts. This includes common COVID-19 symptoms, and where to go
for further information.
II. What happens if you can’t reach casual contacts
- If you do not have access to all your customer’s /visitor’s details, other methods may
be used to notify them that there has been an exposure to COVID-19 on your
premises.
- This could include a notification being sent via the COVID-19 tracer app, or your
business being listed as a Location of Interest on the Ministry of Health website.
4. Be aware of people at high risk of serious illness if they catch COVID-19
Some people are at higher risk of serious illness from COVID-19. This includes those with chronic
health conditions like heart or respiratory disease, or diabetes, pregnant women or those with
weakened immune systems.
If people are concerned, they should seek the advice of their general practitioner or call Healthline
on 0800 358 5453 for advice. Healthline is a free service available 24/7 and has interpreters
available.
You should consider asking these employees to work from home if possible, in case there is further
spread.
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LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 148. What Close Contacts need to do: testing and self-isolation
If someone is identified as a close contact, a contact tracer will get in touch to tell them what
they should do. A team of health staff will carry out regular checks while the individual is
self-isolating.
They will need to self-isolate for at least 10 days, and get tested regularly. If they live with
someone who has COVID-19 they will need to self-isolate for longer.
Self-isolating means you need to stay at home and not see visitors, and if possible stay away
from others in your home. If someone cannot safely self-isolate at home they may need to
go to a managed isolation facility.
Close contacts cannot leave self-isolation until they have been released by the team
checking on their health, following their final day 8 COVID-19 test.
Further advice for close contacts is available at https://www.arphs.health.nz/public-health-
topics/covid-19/for-cases-and-contacts/.
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LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 15Appendix I: Flow charts for identifying close contacts in different environments
This applies if: A person is always a close contact if they have had contact with a case’s respiratory secretions or forced
expiration. For example:
- Auckland region at Orange alert level
- Coughing
- All customers are fully vaccinated
- Sneezing
- All staff are wearing masks
- Sharing cigarettes
- Venus is < 300m² - Sharing drinks
- Customer seating location and servers are known
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LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 16This applies if: A person is always a close contact if they have had contact with a case’s respiratory secretions or forced
expiration. For example:
- Auckland region at Orange alert level
- Coughing
- All customers are fully vaccinated
- Sneezing
- All staff are wearing masks
- Sharing cigarettes
- Venus is < 300m² - Sharing drinks
- Customer seating location and servers are known
-
COVID-19 INFORMATION PACK
LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 17This applies if: A person is always a close contact if they have had contact with a case’s respiratory secretions or forced
expiration. For example:
- Auckland region at Orange alert level
- Coughing
- All customers are fully vaccinated
- Sneezing
- All staff are wearing masks
- Sharing cigarettes
- Venus is < 300m²
- Sharing drinks
-
COVID-19 INFORMATION PACK
LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 18This applies if: A person is always a close contact if they have had contact with a case’s respiratory secretions or forced
expiration. For example:
- Auckland region at Orange alert level
- Coughing
- All customers are fully vaccinated
- Sneezing
- High risk exertion takes place without masks
- Sharing cigarettes
- Staff are wearing masks, unless leading a class
- Sharing drinks
- Pools are considered low risk – all customers and staff are casual contacts unless in group i.e children’s birthday
COVID-19 INFORMATION PACK
LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 19This applies if: A person is always a close contact if they have had contact with a case’s respiratory secretions or forced
expiration. For example:
- Auckland region at Orange alert level
- Coughing
- All customers are fully vaccinated
- Sneezing
- High risk exertion takes place without masks
- Sharing cigarettes
- Staff are wearing masks, unless leading a class
- Sharing drinks
- Pools are considered low risk – all customers and staff are casual contacts unless in group i.e children’s birthday
party
-
COVID-19 INFORMATION PACK
LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 20This applies if: A person is always a close contact if they have had contact with a case’s respiratory secretions or forced
expiration. For example:
- Auckland region at Orange alert level
- Coughing
- All customers are fully vaccinated
- Sneezing
- Venus is < 300m²
- Sharing cigarettes
- Customer seating location is known
- Sharing drinks
COVID-19 INFORMATION PACK
LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 21This applies if: A person is always a close contact if they have had contact with a case’s respiratory secretions or forced
expiration. For example:
- Auckland region at Orange alert level
- Coughing
- All customers are fully vaccinated
- Sneezing
- Venus is < 300m²
- Sharing cigarettes
- Customer seating location is known
- Sharing drinks
COVID-19 INFORMATION PACK
LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 22Appendix II:
Forms for recording close contacts
Please complete the list of close contacts in the tables below – Standardised Public Health
Risk Assessment Form and Collection of Contact Details.
Once you have the name of the case, please consider everywhere they have been on your
premises while infectious and who they were with.
Your business or organisation may have a number of exposure events as a result of the case
being in different spaces with the same or different people, and at different times. For
example:
In a workplace, a case may have been in an office, a lunchroom and a meeting room,
or at the warehouse, and across a number of days while infectious.
In a cafe, a case may have sat outdoors and then moved indoors, or come back the
next day. In a gym, the case may have attended different classes or used equipment
on different days.
For a faith based organisation like a church, the parishioner may have attended a
service in the church, a lunch in the hall, and a study group in someone’s house.
Please complete a new sheet for each exposure event.
When filling in each sheet:
If they are an employee or contractor, you may need to ask the case about their
schedule and their work contacts to fill this in. Some organisations also review CCTV
footage to help inform this.
For other employees or those who share a small space or were in continuous or daily
exposure to the case, the names/details need only be entered for the last day and
last time the case was present while infectious.
Once complete send the Standardised Public Health Risk Assessment Form and Collection of
Contact Details sheets to your contact tracing team.
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LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 23DOWNLOAD >
Standardised Public Health Risk Assessment Form and Collection of Contact Details
CASE DETAILS –
Name of case
Dates or shifts
infectious at premises/
organisation
DESCRIPTION OF PREMISES
Name of organisation
Description of
organisation
Address
Contact person Name Role
(often responsible for Phone
health safety)
Email
Regional or national
parent company/
organisation or single
point of contact details
How do you keep
records of all those who
enter premises (e.g.
mandatory QR code
scanning, have written
records which will be
attached to this risk
assessment, other)
Any specific questions you need answered from Public Health?
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LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 24DOWNLOAD >
Standardised Public Health Risk Assessment Form and Collection of Contact Details
EXPOSURE EVENT 1 - WHERE THE CASE WAS WHILE INFECTIOUS
Description of setting
Indoor or outdoor?
Size of room – especially if over 300 metres sq
Ventilation (HVAC or opening doors/windows)
Activity taking place (e.g. manual, desk based, in
vehicle, singing)
Date/time
Length of time case was in setting?
Case wearing a mask (and what kind) or other PPE
while there? And any eating or drinking when
mask would be down?
Standardised distancing in this space maintained
(1m+)?
Close contacts: Contact tracers will advise your organisation who you should record as a close contact (based on physical environment and type of
interactions). Examples of a close contact in your organisation or business would be someone who:
Was in face to face contact indoors or in a small space (less than 100 metres sq) with the case for 15 minutes or more
Was in the same room for 1 hour or more
Had direct contact with respiratory excretions and/or saliva, or the case forcefully expelling air or their secretions (singing, sharing cigarettes and
vapes, eating utensils, coughing and sneezing, and contact sports)
You should also include members of the public or visitors on your premises for 15 minutes or more during the exposure, if you can identify them
If giving details for a child / adolescent, please provide information on caregiver / parent if known
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LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 25First Name(s) Last Name Staff/contractor/ Date of Phone Email Description of contact Vaccination status if
customer birth number with the case including known
/member of the length of time and (0 doses, 1 dose, 2
public distance doses more than 7
days ago)
(Add more rows as appropriate)
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LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 26Standardised Public Health Risk Assessment Form and Collection of Contact Details
EXPOSURE EVENT 2 - WHERE THE CASE WAS WHILE INFECTIOUS eg. Lunch room, shop floor, office
Description of setting
Indoor or outdoor?
Size of room – especially if over 300 metres sq
Ventilation (HVAC or opening doors/windows)
Activity taking place (e.g. manual, desk based, in
vehicle, singing)
Date/time
Length of time case was in setting?
Case wearing a mask (and what kind) or other PPE
while there? And any eating or drinking when
mask would be down?
Standardised distancing in this space maintained
(1.5m+)?
Close contacts: Contact tracers will advise your organisation who you should record as a close contact (based on physical environment and type of
interactions). Examples of a close contact in your organisation or business would be someone who:
Was in face to face contact indoors or in a small space (less than 100 metres sq) with the case for 15 minutes or more
Was in the same room for 1 hour or more
Had direct contact with respiratory excretions and/or saliva, or the case forcefully expelling air or their secretions (singing, sharing cigarettes and
vapes, eating utensils, coughing and sneezing, and contact sports)
You should also include members of the public or visitors on your premises for 15 minutes or more during the exposure, if you can identify them
If giving details for a child / adolescent, please provide information on caregiver / parent if known
COVID-19 INFORMATION PACK
LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 27First Name(s) Last Name Staff/contractor/ Date of Phone Email Description of contact Vaccination status if
customer birth number with the case including known
/member of the length of time and (0 doses, 1 dose, 2
public distance doses more than 7 days
ago)
(Add more rows as appropriate)
COVID-19 INFORMATION PACK
LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 28Standardised Public Health Risk Assessment Form and Collection of Contact Details
EXPOSURE 3 - WHERE THE CASE WAS WHILE INFECTIOUS eg. Lunch room, shop floor, office
Description of setting
Indoor or outdoor?
Size of room – especially if over 300 metres sq
Ventilation (HVAC or opening doors/windows)
Activity taking place (e.g. manual, desk based, in
vehicle, singing)
Date/time
Length of time case was in setting?
Case wearing a mask (and what kind) or other PPE
while there? And any eating or drinking when
mask would be down?
Standardised distancing in this space maintained
(1.5m+)?
Close contacts: Contact tracers will advise your organisation who you should record as a close contact (based on physical environment and type of
interactions). Examples of a close contact in your organisation or business would be someone who:
Was in face to face contact indoors or in a small space (less than 100 metres sq) with the case for 15 minutes or more
Was in the same room for 1 hour or more
Had direct contact with respiratory excretions and/or saliva, or the case forcefully expelling air or their secretions (singing, sharing cigarettes and
vapes, eating utensils, coughing and sneezing, and contact sports)
You should also include members of the public or visitors on your premises for 15 minutes or more during the exposure, if you can identify them
If giving details for a child / adolescent, please provide information on caregiver / parent if known
COVID-19 INFORMATION PACK
LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 29First Name(s) Last Name Staff/contractor/ Date of Phone Email Description of contact Vaccination status if
customer birth number with the case including known
/member of the length of time and (0 doses, 1 dose, 2
public distance doses more than 7
days ago)
(Add more rows and pages as appropriate)
COVID-19 INFORMATION PACK
LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 30DOWNLOAD >
Appendix III:
Template messaging for staff, customers and members who
are casual contacts
This message can be sent to those on your premises who are not identified as Close Contacts
Highlighted text needs to be edited with relevant information from Public Health, or to
ensure its appropriate for your workplace.
This message contains important information provided by Public Health. Please read this carefully.
A [staff member/visitor/customer] has been confirmed as having COVID-19. The person was
infectious at [name of premises] from [dates when infectious on site]. Those that were in close
contact with the case have been provided the appropriate public health advice, including testing and
self-isolation requirements.
What you need to do
Please watch for symptoms and if any develop, get tested immediately and self-isolate
If you do not develop symptoms you can still come to work / visit our premises as normal
Our premises are staying open – if classed as low risk setting
Based on international and local evidence and experience, the risk of COVID-19 transmission is low
at most places if safety measures are followed, such as masks. This means that it is no longer
necessary for sites such as ours to close when a case has been identified as infectious on the
premises.
Please watch for symptoms of COVID-19
If you develop any of the following symptoms, no matter how mild, ring Healthline on 0800 358
5453 or your doctor, and get tested. Healthline is a free, 24/7 service with interpreters available.
Common symptoms of COVID-19 are like those found with illnesses such as a cold or influenza. You
may have one or more of the following:
new or worsening cough
sneezing and runny nose
fever
temporary loss of smell or altered sense of taste
sore throat
shortness of breath
COVID-19 INFORMATION PACK
LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 31Less common symptoms of COVID-19 may include diarrhoea, headache, muscle aches, nausea, vomiting, malaise, chest pain, abdominal pain, joint pain, or confusion/irritability. These almost always occur with one or more of the common symptoms. If you are not vaccinated, do so as soon as possible to protect yourself and your whānau against COVID-19. You can book your vaccine online at www.bookmyvaccine.covid19.health.nz. This website has information on your closest walk-in vaccination centre, or you can go to www.healthpoint.co.nz/covid-19-vaccination or www.karawhiua.nz/all-clinics. Please contact [insert contact details] if you have any questions. Manager/owner COVID-19 INFORMATION PACK LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 32
Appendix IV: Frequently asked questions COVID-19 at your business or workplace What happens if additional cases are identified on my premises? You will need to complete additional risk assessments, and the contact tracing team will advise you on any further action needed. Am I expected to identify all the places the employee or customers has gone (e.g. bathrooms, lifts)? There is no expectation that you will provide information on every place the case has been or all their interactions. The public health assessment will be based on information which can be known and gathered relatively quickly, and where the case is likely to have interacted with others for a prolonged amount of time (e.g. a waiter serving several tables throughout an evening, the office members in the same room as the case). Some businesses review CCTV footage to find out where the case has been and who they got close to. This is a useful tool to identify close contacts if it is available, and if it can be reviewed quickly. Will I have to do a deep clean if a COVID-19 case is on my premises? There is no requirement to do a ‘deep clean’. You can find advice and guidelines for cleaning during the COVID-19 pandemic from the Ministry of Health. Will my business be named as a Location of Interest? When it is difficult to identify who was near the case while they were on your premises, and there was a higher risk of COVID-19 transmission, we are likely to list it as a location of interest. For example non-seated hospitality venues, such as bars or concerts. Closed exposure events, for instance, a hair appointment where all the close contacts are known and have mobile or email details, may not be listed as Locations of Interest, as everyone who is at risk can be provided with advice. Businesses may not be told first that they are Locations of Interest, as it is important we get the information out as soon as possible. My employee lives with a case, what do I need to do? You do not need to do anything even if this employee has been at work before they were told to self-isolate. While household contacts often become cases, you only need to take action if they were infectious at work. You should then follow the contact tracing step by step guidance. Please be aware that household contacts have an extended period of self-isolation, as they may be continuously exposed to the virus if the case isolates at home. Household contacts begin their 10 day self-isolation period after the case has been released, and this 10 days is required for vaccinated and unvaccinated household contacts. If others in the household become cases, then the period of self-isolation of others in the household may be extended again. COVID-19 INFORMATION PACK LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 33
Any employees who are close contacts are provided with a clearance letter when it is safe for them to finish self-isolating. This happens when they no longer risk infecting others, and they will have had several tests to confirm this. Is financial support available if my business is affected by COVID-19 disruptions? Yes, there are various COVID-19 financial support schemes available to businesses, depending on your situation. More information is available from business.govt.nz. More information on the COVID protection framework is also available from business.govt.nz. COVID-19 transmission Do I need to identify those who shared small spaces for a very short period of time (e.g. bathrooms & lifts)? Being in a bathroom or a lift with a case is considered a brief, passing exposure, so this person would be a casual contact, and needs only to watch for symptoms and stay home and get tested if sick. What if the case has shared a car with someone? If you know that the case has been in a car with others from your workplace, please include this as an exposure event for each day/time it occurred. If the case car-shares or commutes with others in your organisation, please include this detail as well. Will everyone in an open plan office be a close contact? Generally large spaces are less of a concern than smaller rooms, especially if there is good airflow. Consider who has been in face to face contact or in an area of less than 100 square metres, for longer than 15 minutes. What about outside workers (e.g. outdoor construction sites)? Working outside greatly reduces the risk of transmission. Workers may be close contacts if they have been in portacoms or sheds or other small spaces together, or have been sitting close while unmasked – like lunch time. Do I need to worry if people have come into the same space after the case has left? The highest risk in a workplaces are considered to be people in the same space at the same time – like car sharing and when eating lunch together. The amount of virus infected people expel is also substantially reduced by wearing masks. The risk of picking up the virus from surfaces is now considered to be very low. Businesses do not need to identify employees (or customers) who have been in the same space (unless it’s at the same time as the case). COVID-19 symptoms & testing What should I do if I have a sick employee on my premises? Anyone who has COVID-19 like symptoms should go home, and get a test immediately, and then stay home until they receive a negative result and have been symptom free for at least 24 hours. If they are told they are a close contact they also need to wait to finish isolating until they are cleared by the health team that checks their symptoms. COVID-19 symptoms can include: COVID-19 INFORMATION PACK LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 34
• Sneezing or runny nose
• Loss of smell or altered sense of
taste
• New or worsening cough
• Diarrhoea
• Shortness of breath
• Nausea and vomiting
• Sore throat
• Headache
• Fever
• Muscle pain or body aches
How long is a case infectious?
A person with COVID-19 is considered infectious from 48 hours before their symptoms started (or
the date of their test if they had no symptoms).
They must isolate for at least 14 days from their symptom onset/positive test result. They will then
be assessed and cleared to leave self-isolation by Public Health.
How long does it take to get a test result?
If the result is positive, they should hear back in around 48 hours. Negative tests can take a bit
longer to return, and sometimes up to 5 days. Please contact your doctor or testing centre if you do
not have your result within five days.
Advice for contacts
Do close contacts still need to isolate if they are vaccinated?
Yes. The vaccine is a good protective measure, but no vaccine is 100% effective. You may still get ill
or pass the virus to others even if you don’t have symptoms.
How will I know if close contacts can return to work/my premises?
All close contacts are provided with a clearance letter when it is safe for them to finish self-isolating.
This is when they no longer risk infecting others, and they have had several tests to confirm this.
Do we need to take special steps for staff or individuals at our workplace who may be at
greater risk due to other health conditions?
Some people, such as pregnant women, those with diabetes or obesity, or those who are immune-
compromised, may be at higher risk of illness from COVID. These people should seek the advice of
their general practitioner or call Healthline on 0800 358 5453.
COVID-19 INFORMATION PACK
LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 35Appendix V:
Management plan for your workplace or organisation
Facility Management
Infection control strategies on site including cleaning:
A normal clean for that area is usually all that is required after a COVID-19 positive case has been
there. Airing out the area can also be a good idea, if possible improve ventilation by opening
windows and doors to improve air flow. Cleaning requirements are outlined on the Ministry of
Health Website.
Visitor management/closure
Once you have been notified that a case has been at your premise, you may want to stop others
entering the premises until all of the close contacts have been identified and are in isolation. Once
this has occurred, the risk to others is low so your business can continue to operate.
Vaccination plan and further preventative measures
Vaccinations are the best way to reduce the risk of COVID-19, and ensure your organisation is able to
remain open. Those who are not identified as close contacts and do not have symptoms can get
vaccinated at any time.
Tell those who use your premise to visit www.bookmyvaccine.nz for more information.
Other steps you can put in place following an exposure event, to improve prevention and control,
may include:
Encouraging proper mask use and limiting times where people have their mask
down at the same time (e.g. having a drink or food, especially indoors).
Having staff or others work in bubbles, where groups work together consistently
and there isn’t mixing of these bubbles.
Raising awareness of the signs of COVID-19 and how to stay safe, using these
posters. It is important people don’t come onto your premises if symptomatic or
if they have been identified as a close contact. Anyone with symptoms needs to
get tested immediately and stay home until they have a negative test result.
COVID-19 INFORMATION PACK
LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 36Appendix VI:
Getting prepared and reducing the risk of COVID-19
A COVID-19 safety plan is critical to keeping people who use your premises safe. This should
include:
Encouraging or requiring the use of three layered or medical face masks
Working in bubbles, and having physical distancing and limits on numbers
indoors as required
Enabling and encouraging good health, hygiene and safety practices
Displaying NZ COVID Tracer QR code posters and paper-based sign in systems,
including recording of external contractors or visitors
Maximising ventilation/air filtration systems
Daily screening of staff or those regularly on site to identify possible COVID-19
symptoms
Encouraging and enabling vaccination and keeping records of vaccination status
(where known)
Promoting regular testing (also known as surveillance testing)
Staggering break times or limiting times when people are eating or drinking
together indoors
Consider adopting practices to lower the risk, for example offering contactless
options for people to engage with your premises
Update your business after-hours details in the COVID Tracer database or have
an after-hours email or mobile on your website, so you can alerted of a case at
the weekend.
What you need to know for business continuity
Anyone in close contact with a case, or indoors with a case for over 15 minutes, may
become a close contact and have to self-isolate.
Where feasible, high risk activities should be considered to take place outdoors if possible
including eating and drinking, serving customers, exercise and large gatherings
Ensure you take every precaution not to allow any potential cases to participate. Watch out
for those with symptoms, encourage mask use and ask people if they are a known contact.
Further advice and information
COVID-19 INFORMATION PACK
LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 37The following links provide further information on requirements and resources for
businesses:
Worksafe: Operating safely- what you need to think about Contains a useful
COVID-19 safety plan template
Worksafe: How to decide what work requires a vaccinated employee
Worksafe: Guidance on contact record and face coverings
Ministry of Health: COVID-19 website
Ministry of Health: Guidelines for businesses and services
Advice for specific workplaces:
Construction Health and Safety NZ: COVID-19 and working at the current alert level
Hospitality NZ: Guidance for food and beverage retailers
COVID-19 INFORMATION PACK
LAST UPDATED 21/01/2022 38You can also read
