Since the government made clear that work on construction sites should continue if it is safe to do so, we have been keen to set an example of how work can be carried out safely in these challenging times. While these practices, based on construction industry guidelines as a minimum standard, make our work more difficult, they are essential and part of the ‘new normal’ to which all businesses must adapt.
Our COVID-19 mitigation measures involve:
- Personnel working from home wherever practical
- Workers travelling to site by car rather than together by bus
- A temperature monitoring programme (using thermal imaging cameras)
- Enhanced site cleaning, additional handwashing facilities and sanitiser stations
- Additional Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for all site personnel
- Social distancing measures across our sites, including canteens, offices and changing facilities
- Staggered shifts and breaks to avoid crowding and ensure social distancing can be maintained
- Providing additional meeting areas for employees to aid social distancing
Where social distancing is not possible, in line with government guidance, the work does not take place without a specific planning process to ensure there is no other way to do it. In these situations, the time people are within close contact is minimised and appropriate safeguards, such as face masks, gloves and respiratory protective equipment are used.
Since the COVID-19 outbreak, the company has given a total of £20,000 to food banks in Redcar & Cleveland and to a meal delivery service for vulnerable people in Whitby. We have also donated laptops to Pindar School in Eastfield to aid student remote learning. The Sirius Minerals Foundation has granted £20,000 to local charities, and is in discussions with local authorities and partners to discuss how it could best support the post-Covid recovery. As part of the takeover, Anglo American pledged an additional £4 million worth of funding for the foundation over the next four years.