Businesses will have to show they have adequate safety measures in place when they reopen during the coronavirus pandemic, according to the CEO of a nonprofit that helps companies plan for and recover from disasters.
“Customers are going to be demanding not just assumptions of safety but visible steps and measures that companies are taking on behalf of their employees and on behalf of their customers,” Chloe Demrovsky, CEO of Disaster Recovery Institute International, told CNBC on Wednesday.
Demrovsky said on “The Exchange” that in general, the types of safety measures implemented by businesses will vary across sector and by size. But all businesses must have a plan, she said.
“Shutting down businesses was difficult. Reactivating them is going to be harder,” she said.
Policies businesses could put in place includes temperature checks at doors, in addition to a continued adherence to social distancing, Demrovsky said.
The changes may be particularly visible in restaurants. She said some may install Plexiglas barriers and switch to disposable eating utensils.
“Even in sectors where we’re not used to seeing it, we’re going to have to see personal protective equipment on all employees,” Demrovsky said, adding that some stores may require that customers also wear masks.
She said retail stores that typically have samples, or testers, for products such as lotion or makeup will most likely have to stop doing so.
“They’re not going to be able to do that, they’re not going to be able to offer that kind of service to people, unless they do individually packaged things for example,” Demrovsky said.
Companies that are currently closed can draw from the lessons of essential businesses still in operation such as grocery stores, she said.
Demrovsky’s comments come as some states prepare to ease up on their coronavirus mitigation policies with the goal of restarting economies. Many health experts and business leaders are warning that such moves may be premature in the absence of widespread testing.