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Friday, July 10, 2020
Team,
As many of you are aware the COVID 19 virus has recently spiked in many parts of the country. As a result Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf has issued a mandatory (14) day self-quarantine mandate for anyone returning to Pennsylvania from certain “red” states. Additional information regarding this most recent mandate can be found on the web at https://www.health.pa.gov/topics/disease/coronavirus/Pages/Travelers.aspx.
As of this date, July 9, 2020, returning to Pennsylvania from the following states requires a (14) day self-quarantine:
- Alabama
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Florida
- Georgia
- Idaho
- Louisiana
- Mississippi
- Nevada
- North Carolina
- South Carolina
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
If you plan to visit any one of these states, or any additional “red” states that may be added to the list, for vacation or other reason, you must provide your supervisor with the following information:
- State or states you are traveling to
- Departure and return date
- If you were knowingly in contact with anyone who has tested positive for the COVID 19 flu upon your return.
Forcine Concrete is required to enforce whatever mandates are in-place upon your return. This could include a (14) day quarantine without pay. If you have any questions please contact your supervisor. If an employee returning from the “Red” states has been in contact with someone who tested positive for Covid 19, he/she must contact HR for further instructions before returning to work. Also, check the above website for Pennsylvania updates.
Remember to work safe and continue to practice all of the COVID 19 recommendations.
Rich
Previous Updates
Forcine Team,
I hope everyone is doing well as we slowly return our lives back to “normal”. I want to take this opportunity to remind everyone of the importance of following all COVID safety guidelines. This includes FCC guidelines (attached for reference) and all job site specific guidelines.
It is mandatory that you:
- Wear a face covering (mask) at all times while at work
- Limit employee travel to (2) persons per vehicle
- Stay home if you’re sick
The safety of all of our employees and the people they come in contact with is of utmost importance. Strict adherence to all COVID safety guidelines is the only way we can insure a safe work environment and do our part to stop the spread of the disease.
Thank you all in advance for your continue cooperation as we work together to make the best of these trying times. Stay safe and stay healthy!!
Rich
Forcine Team,
I hope this update finds you and your families safe and healthy.
Just a few reminders as we begin to ramp back up and return to work. First and foremost the success of our return to work lies in the hands of all of you and your dedication to working safely. Although the COVID threat appears to be contained, or at least trending in the right direction, that doesn’t mean it’s gone. If we all do our part, by strictly following all CDC and Forcine COVID recommendations, we can successfully return to work safely with very little risk of contracting or transmitting the virus. Additionally, our jobsites are taking similar precautions to create a safe work environment.
Attached, as a reminder, is a copy of the Forcine COVID safety plan. Please read, follow and enforce all recommendations. We now have all of the require PPE for all of our employees which can be obtained from your supervisor. Supplies are limited so take care of your company provided PPE.
We will also need your help in policing each other and our job sites. If you witness an unsafe job site condition, COVID or other, please let your supervisor know so we can take the appropriate steps to correct. These steps are imperative in preventing another outbreak which could force us all back into “shelter in place”. Something none of us want to endure any longer.
Regarding reporting to the shop each morning. If you are required to report to the shop in the morning there will be no more congregating or assembling in groups greater than five. The idea is to eliminate being at the shop unless you have to and to eliminate people from hanging out and gathering in groups. This is mandatory for both Malvern and Hanover and will be strictly monitored by Mike Dimmit and Pete. Bottom line, if you don’t need to go to the shop please stay away!
If you have any questions please contact your supervisor.
All the best!
Rich
Forcine Team,
Hope everyone is doing well. Here is the latest update on what our goals are for the upcoming weeks.
Many of our PA jobs have received waivers with others expected this week. Our NJ projects are all open and are requesting our immediate return to work. As a region it appears that the social distancing and PPE efforts are paying off as COVID cases begin to trend in a more encouraging direction. To that, we will begin ramping up all work activities starting Monday April 20th.
Our goal to return to work on April 20th is based on a number of factors and conditions, all of which we believe will significantly reduce the risk of spreading or contracting COVID. Here are the factors we considered in establishing this goal.
- First and foremost are the safety precautions that Forcine will be enforcing along with the job site specific protocols our clients are mandating.
- Proper PPE
- Gloves
- Face protection/masks must be worn at all times (this can be a bandanna or another homemade mask)
- Hand washing stations on job sites
- Disinfecting products to clean hands and tools
- Social distancing
- Trade specific work areas (limit trades in work areas)
- Travel to job alone or maximum of two people in crew cabs (driver with passenger in back opposite side of driver both with masks). If driving your own vehicle NO carpooling is allowed. One person per vehicle – no exceptions.
- Daily check list to keep sick people home and away from job sites
- Proper PPE
- We will have done our part in helping to flatten the curve through our four week hiatus.
- The vast majority of our jobs are outdoors or in large open spaces with very few other trades.
- Satisfying our contractual obligations to limit our financial losses. If we hold out too much longer we might not have jobs to return to.
For those employees who elect not to return to work, or cannot return to work, they will be required to signup for unemployment insurance. Current medical insurance will last for (30) days from your signup date at which time you will be offered COBRA (employee paid) for continuation of their medical coverage. Please notify your supervisor if you fall into this category. Hanover employees call Pete (717) 873-2302 and Malvern employees call Mike Dimmit (610) 547-0900.
The responsibility to work safely and adhere to all safety guidelines falls on ALL of us. Please let your supervisor or project manager know of any situations that violate the safety protocols. The last thing we want to do is put any of you in an avoidable and potential risky situation. Any and all questions regarding unemployment insurance and health care should be direct to Dr. Li at (484) 356-7790
I hope this finds you all well and with hope of returning some normality to your daily lives.
Rich
Forcine Team,
Sorry for the delay since our last company update. The information continues to change almost daily and as a result our company direction continues to change as well. So as of this writing here is what we know and what we’re doing as a company.
First off I hope all of you and your families are safe and healthy. There has NOT been a single reported case of any employee or family member who has be diagnosed or tested positive for COVID-19. This is great news and will continue to be our number one goal.
Regarding our current projects:
All of our New Jersey projects remain open and are moving forward. Most of our clients and job sites have made changes, or suggestions, on how we can remain working safely while following all COVID-19 safety guidelines (social distancing, traveling to the job alone, PPE, wash hands frequently, limiting workers in work areas, off-hour shifts, among others). We too have implemented a COVID-19 safety policy for all employees to follow along with a driving reimbursement policy for those who drive direct to the job site (see attached). Our NJ clients continue to push for us to get our contract work complete which continues to be a major challenge with the limited workforce we currently have. Some clients are threatening to bring in other subs to complete our work along with other contractual threats to financially harm us. Anything to get their job done! We’re doing our best to work where we can, when we can and with whom we have available. We will continue to play this day by day and week by week until something changes. Along with defending our contractual obligations.
PA jobs are starting to get waivers as “essential” projects so they can start to work again. Currently LHV 83, Fresh Pet, Amerihealth and Bluewater have their waivers and are asking us to return to work next week. A. Duie Pylie should have theirs soon along with others who have applications in for approval. We are hopeful that these projects, which are located in more rural and less infected areas, will allow more of our workforce to resume work . These projects will also be implementing COVID-19 specific safety rules and guidelines.
Layoffs:
The first round of Unemployment Insurance (UI) signups was issued. This group was personally notified and given clear instruction on what to do and how to sign up. Future rounds of UI request will follow for those who cannot work or are not willing to work during this pandemic. All questions regarding UI signup and associated benefits should be directed to Dr. Li (lgonzalez@forcineconcrete.com or 484-356-7790).
Our policy regarding working on job sites during this pandemic remains the same. It’s a personal choice that needs to be decided by each employee. We will not force anyone who is not comfortable during this pandemic to report to work. I would ask that you stay in contact with your supervisor as you make or change your decision.
The CARES Act:
This is the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act which was finally passed last week. The act was designed to alleviate the economic impact of the coronavirus on both individuals and businesses. Included in this act, among other things, are the recovery checks you all might of heard of, paycheck protection program and small business loans to cover payroll and other essential payments. We are currently trying to, first understand what has actual been approved, and secondly trying to understand how we can get our hands on some of this money to help all of you and our company. The details remain sketchy and seem to change almost daily. We currently have Ann, Dr. Li, our banker and our accountant working on applications to receive these benefits. The recovery checks come direct from the government so this portion is out of our hands.
In the upcoming days/weeks we will again update you with new information as it becomes available to us. We remain hopeful that all of us and our families will be spared from this horrible disease and remain safe and healthy throughout the pandemic. Stay safe and stay strong we will need all of you when life and work returns to normal in the near future.
All the best!
Rich
All,
Providing all of you with an accurate and current update continues to be very challenging as things change by the hour if not minute. Here’s what we know and are doing as of this writing.
PA projects remain closed until further notice as mandated by Governor Tom Wolf last week. NJ job sites remain open, very much to our surprise, as mandated by NJ Governor Phil Murphy this past Saturday as well during his afternoon update today. As a result we are being pressured to man these projects as contracturaly obligated. We are working with our attorney to understand the true impact here.
We are trying to man the NJ projects utilizing only the Malvern crews to eliminate long travel and hotel stays. The Hanover guys will NOT be penalized……this is a team effort. Johnny, Mike and Mike are sorting out our available manpower as we speak. We are not sure how this will work out or for how long so we will play it day by day.
Tomorrow we hope to have an update on what the Federal Government will be offering our employees forced out of work due to the coronavirus. This information is necessary for us to determine how Forcine Concrete will additionally participte in taking care of our valued workforce.
For now, if not working, sit tight and stay safe. For those resuming work tomorrow, also be safe and follow all social distancing guidelines.
Sincerely,
Richard W. Futterer
Vice President / Partner
All,
As most of you know yesterday evening Governor Tom Wolf further extended non-essential mandatory shutdowns to include construction for the state of PA. As a result we have halted all office and field operations as of this writing. We cannot say for sure how long we will be shut down. As we get more information we will notify you immediately.
Forcine ownership is continuing to work on a plan to insure all of our employees get through these troubled times. Over the next few days we will be providing you with additional information regarding weekly compensation and other proposed Federal subsidies. For now we ask that you stay safe and follow all the state and federal guidelines to help stop the spread of the virus. If any of you or your crew members get the COVID 19 virus please notify your supervisor immediately. This information must be communicated to us so we can take the appropriate actions on our end.
We all remain hopeful that the temporary work shutdown will be effective in slowing down the spread of the virus keeping all of us and our families safe. When this is all over we fully expect to be back working at even a more accelerated pace to make up for the lost time. Take this time off the be with your families, recharge your battery and stay healthy for when we return to action. If you have any questions please contact me directly or your supervisor.
Sincerely,
Richard W. Futterer
Vice President / Partner