A Level 6 alert means that company officials will be asked by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to undertake a number of efforts to fight any pandemic -- including the appointment of a workplace pandemic coordinator or team.

The coordinator would be responsible for monitoring employees to ensure they follow basic rules of hygiene, such as washing hands, and to make sure that breathing masks are available. And if a worker becomes sick, the pandemic monitor is supposed to ensure they go home, according to Jack Sotallaro, director of education at DRI International Inc. in Conway, Ark.

... In the meantime, he said, companies need to ensure that employees observe basic hygiene rules and wash their hands often. They should also already have an influenza or pandemic officer chosen to monitor the health of employees to determine if someone on-site has been infected.

... Disaster recovery and business continuity planning can be the difference between no disruption in operations and a company going out of business. According to Croy, 29% of U.S. businesses that suffer a major disaster fail within two to four months.
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