With construction work at the Rio de Janeiro Petrochemical Complex (COMPERJ) and others about to start at the shipyard, in São José do Norte (RS), in addition to the corporate office in São Paulo, Toyo Setal and the EBR Shipyard acted quickly to preserve people’s health and, at the same time, organize themselves so as not to paralyze projects.
Awareness Campaign
The health and safety of employees and contractors come first for Toyo Setal and EBR Shipyard, says Rosemeire Onofre, from the Human and Organizational Development area. For this reason, the company’s leaders were already monitoring the evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil and, on March 10, protocols were defined for the prevention, identification and treatment of cases involving in-house and outsourced professionals. An awareness campaign was also started based on the recommendations of the World Health Organization and the Ministry of Health.
“It is important to highlight that our actions are in accordance with the recommendations of the health authorities, municipal, state and federal governments”, observes Nathália Fim, responsible for the company’s Legal Department. These are measures for restricting personal contact, canceling trips and prioritizing the use of alternative communication channels, such as videoconference meetings and the Microsoft Teams tool.
As it could not be different, hygiene and cleaning care were also intensified to prevent the spread of the disease. In the works, in addition to these measurements, laser thermometers were made available to measure the temperature even before the professionals entered the transport provided by the companies Toyo Setal and EBR. The medical area is permanently available to advise on possible flu and other queries.
At the same time, with the support of the IT team, the remote work process began, starting with professionals from the risk group (elderly people, hypertensive patients, diabetics and pregnant women, among others) and for employees who had any symptoms of flu. As a result, the other professionals also started to work from their homes. Only a few people were left in the office who needed to use very specific systems, which cannot be accessed from a distance. Even so, they were physically redistributed to avoid close contact and all hygiene precautions continue, such as making alcohol gel available on the company’s premises and providing a protective mask, among others.
At the construction sites
Nathália informs that at COMPERJ, where most work in the field, following the guidance of the City of Itaboraí, 70% of the workers were placed on vacation. “With that, we reduced the agglomeration of people, but we were able to keep the business active and mainly the maintenance of jobs, which is the great concern of the managers of Toyo / EBR”, she explains.
Another action we take is to always keep customers and suppliers informed of the measures that the company has been taking. “There is no cake recipe. We are following what the government is ordering. Our internal committee makes decisions at every moment, always thinking about people’s health, so that they can return healthy as soon as this crisis passes”, says Rosemeire.
According to her, the company’s leaders and managers monitor and support people who are working at home, in the office and on the construction sites in Itaboraí and EBR. To help maintain mental health and well-being, the company sends out tips daily and maintains communication. “We encourage managers to be closer to their teams, to talk through communication tools, schedule meetings and even happy hour remotely. We need to make up for the lack of social contact and create other means of being close, monitoring and motivating people. After all, they are part of our history and are responsible for delivering our differentiated services”, she concludes.
Content Publisher/Abgail Cardoso