about it in the news lately. What is it and why should you be worried
about it? Avian influenza affects poultry and wild game birds. It has
been mainly in Southeast Asia but is spreading to other countries. Since
2003 160 people worldwide have become ill and about 82 have died. It is
deadly to poultry and can be lethal in humans as well. The people who
have contacted bird flu have been in close contact with i...
Bird flu? Have you heard of it? You have probably been hearing more
about it in the news lately. What is it and why should you be worried
about it? Avian influenza affects poultry and wild game birds. It has
been mainly in Southeast Asia but is spreading to other countries. Since
2003 160 people worldwide have become ill and about 82 have died. It is
deadly to poultry and can be lethal in humans as well. The people who
have contacted bird flu have been in close contact with infected birds.
At this time it is not transmitted by human-to-human contact. But
scientists fear, and health experts agree, that it is only a matter of
time that the virus will change into a form that can be easily passed
from person to person. When that happens there will be an increased risk
of a worldwide pandemic.
We will not have immunity to this form of the flu and it can be deadly.
It may be similar to the 1918 flu that killed 40-50 million people
around the world. If it starts to spread, life as we know it will
change. Millions will become ill and millions will die around the world.
This flu could last for months at a time and up to three years. More
than likely schools and businesses would be closed, public events
canceled, transportation shut down and travel severely limited. Meaning
your only choice is to stay home with your family.
Your business or company may have anywhere from 30-60% of the employees
out sick, or out to take care of ill family members.
A bird flu pandemic could last for weeks or months at a time. You may be
out of work for several months. You may want to start taking some
measures now so you are prepared for being out of work and loss of income.
You need to ask your employer how they will be handling a pandemic
crisis. What will their policies be? How are they going to provide a
healthy work environment so that it will minimize the spread of the flu?
How is your health insurance? Does it need to be updated? Will they
offer additional sick time or paid leave of absence? Can you get a wage
or salary advance or partial advance? Who will fill in for you, if you
are out sick or need to stay home with family members who are ill? Are
your co-workers crossed trained? What happens if you need to stay home
with your children because schools are closed? Can your business run
with 50% of employees out sick? What happens if the business needs to
shut down completely? How do they plan on communicating with employees
who are at home? Are there options for working at home? What if you need
to leave the area to go somewhere safer? Will you have a job when you
return? These are the type of questions you need to start asking today
before a bird flu pandemic.
You will want to make copies of your employment agreements, health and
life insurance policies and other employee documents including
investment plans, stock options and other benefits. If we enter a
pandemic and you need to stay home and be out of work for several
months, you may want to consider tapping into any investment plans to
find available cash to carry you through. A global influenza pandemic
will have catastrophic consequences worldwide that will affect your
business, career, investments, home, family and community. Stay informed
about the bird flu and start planning for a possible pandemic.
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