Tag: social distancing

'Anything dead coming back to life hurts'. These words were written by Tony Morrison in her powerful book Beloved. The character was talking about a starkly different scenario, but I believe the principle stands true to our world today. We are very slowly entering a phase of coming back to life.

On 29 April 2020, the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, published regulations in terms of the National Disaster Management Act which regulate the Alert Level 4 conditions during the COVID-19 national disaster.

The act of creation is a human being’s primal superpower. We don’t fly, and yet we do. We made that possible. We don’t breathe underwater, and yet we do. We can’t walk on the moon and yet we have. We can’t deflect the coronavirus and yet I have every faith we will.

With President Cyril Ramaphosa announcing a phased lifting of the lockdown commencing 1 May, many business owners and managers are starting to prepare for the safe return of workers to the workplace. We put a number of business continuity contingency plans into action well ahead of the lockdown.

Business owners need to ensure that their workspaces are properly cleaned and thoroughly cleansed before employees report for duty once the lockdown has been lifted. It is expected that large numbers of workers will be able to return to work, but it is critical to ensure that their workspaces are properly cleansed and that hygiene measures are kept at the highest possible level to prevent the possible transmission of the coronavirus.

COVID-19 is wreaking havoc amongst us, not because it’s causing global physical and economic meltdown, but for exacerbating another pandemic we’ve been dealing with for decades: loneliness. Science has long recognised that loneliness is emotionally painful and can lead to a host of side effects including heart disease, stroke, cancer and Alzheimer’s.

Consumer concerns related to COVID-19 including fears of being infected by the coronavirus while attending to their banking matters and stress related to debt issues have come to our attention. In response to President Ramaphosa’s address on the measures to contain the spread of the coronavirus, we urge consumers to remain calm and to follow the stringent measures in place to protect both themselves and their families. 

Nationally, on 1 May 2020, South Africa will move from its current position at level 5 to level 4. This means that all essential services will be able to continue operating together with the following additional sectors: food retail stores will be permitted to sell full line of products, agriculture, forestry, mining, financial and professional services, postal and telecommunications services, information technology services and formal waste recycling services.

As the nationwide COVID-19 lockdown nears the end of its initial deadline, businesses across the country have had to review the way that they communicate with their employees. With the diminished in-person contact that employers now have with their workforce, it is vital to have a system in place that ensures staff are equipped with the right information in order to stay safe, remain engaged with their companies, and be prepared for work to resume.

The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases worldwide surpassed one million last week. This number probably still understates the true spread of the coronavirus given the lack of testing in many places, and the fact that some infected persons don’t show symptoms.