communicable disease

jgarrett · July 2001

I would like to hear from other members on how they handle an employee that has a communicable disease (TB). Can I put him on FMLA, what happens after 12 weeks, should we have a doctors all clear before he comes back to work? I would appreciate any direction. jgarrett

Pat Dalton · July 2001

You would give this person FMLA if he/she is eligible. Generally, unless the employee is resistent to the drugs normally used to treat TB, the 12 week period is more than adequate to treat the person to the point that they are no longer communicable. You don't mention how acutely ill the person is, which can have a bearing on the return to work date. You should definitely have a physician's medical clearance before the employee returns to the work place. The clearance should specifically state that he/she is no longer communicable.

awilliams · December 2001

If you know, or even suspect that the employee has a communicable disease, you ove it to the employee and your other workers to follow up on that hunch. Require that the employee present a return-to-work form signed by his physician and request that the physician list the accommodations that the employee will need in order not to contaminiate any other employees.

Keep in mind that the Americans with Disabilities Act requires employers to only reasonably accommodate employees if it is not a substantial hardship on the employer to do so. I would find that possibly contaminating all of your workforce would be the type of hardship you could avoid by not accommodating the employee. In other words, it may be ok to tell the employee not to come around until he is no longer contagious.

Anne Williams
Attorney Editor

Margaret Morford · December 2001

You do need to be careful not to discuss this person's condition with people that do not need to know. You do not want to buy yourself an invasion of privacy lawsuit. People that might possibly have been exposed and need to be tested should be told. If possible, say that an employee may have TB and your are testing everybody to ensure their safety. You needn't reveal who the employee is. However, you can also talk to the TB employee and ask his/her permission to discuss his/her condition with co-workers because you want to be sure that eveyone knows he/she will be fine when he/she returns and will not be afraid of contagion. If the employee gives you permission, there's no danger in discussing him/her by name.

You might also get a doctor to come on-site to answer employee questions to allay employee fears.

Margaret Morford
theHRedge
615-371-8200
[email]mmorford@mleesmith.com[/email]
[url]http://www.thehredge.net[/url]

Hatchetman · December 2001

Also, check with your local health department. It may be able to provide "unbiased" information to your workforce about TB and the risk on them of a co-worker who was a former TB patient, if any. You don't need to identify to the co-workers who the individual is when such information is presented. By presenting informaiton, you may help prevent unnecessary fears and rumors and the like.

Gerri · December 2001

In regards to contacting your local health department - not only is it a wise idea to contact them for more information about the communicable disease, but it is a necessity to contact them. I've had two different situations were an employee came to work claiming to have a communicable disease. Our local health department informed me of how this is tracked (especially if the diagnosis was made by health care professional) and what they needed to know, i.e. exposure to others, etc. Your local health department is a very important resource in these matters and can advise you well. As it turned out, neither employee had the diseases they claimed to have.

communicable disease

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