Prime minister Jacinda Ardern has announced that outside of Auckland, New Zealand will move to COVID-19 alert level 2 at 11.59pm Tuesday September 7. Auckland will remain at alert level 4 until at least 11.59pm Tuesday September 14.
Under level two, businesses can open, and staff can be at the workplace if needed. Face coverings are mandatory in the workplace now says the prime minister as is scanning in with the COVID-19 tracing app.
Contact tracing measures must be in place, two metre social distancing should be practiced and sanitisation measures should be in place.
Any staff 70 years-old or older, or people who are immunocompromised or have certain pre-existing conditions, need to stay at home.
Everyone who can work at home, should. That means you should review if any of your non-public-facing staff can do their job from home – this could mean management, accounts, marketing, finance and insurance staff should be working from home where possible.
The number of sales staff on the floor should be reduced, and those working should follow hygiene best practice – no shaking hands, maintain distance from the customer and regularly wash hands.
Steering wheels and door handles should be sanitised on showroom vehicles frequently.
Those not on the floor could prospect on the phone and online from home.
In the workshop, the same hygiene rules should apply, and the use of seat and steering wheel covers – removed and disposed of before the customer collecting the vehicle – should be considered for use.
Grooming staff, in particular, should use personal protective equipment – gloves, masks, eye protection – due to their interaction with surfaces recently touched by others.
At the service desk, consider email invoices to customers for payment before their arrival and use only card – ideally payWave – payments.
*Go to covid19.govt.nz for further information regarding health, assistance and safety.
