Nyack Library

I. Purpose

The COVID-19 Pandemic Emergency creates unprecedented challenges for the Nyack Library to protect and serve its community and to protect its employees. The Library is a committed partner in the preservation and advancement of health and safety in our community. To effectively plan and provide for the health and safety of every person who visits or works in the Library, the Board of Trustees will adopt a Services During the Pandemic Emergency Policy for a time period limited by the duration of this public health emergency. Nyack Library staff have the authority to enforce these measures like any other Library rule. Concerns about this policy should be directed to the Library Director.

The Nyack Library is committed to providing a safe and healthy workplace and facility for its staff and its patrons during this health emergency. Safety procedures, equipment and policies are necessary in an health emergency, such as the COVID-19 emergency, but they are also important as a general measure of public health protection. The Library will follow all applicable Local, State and Federal law governing employer responsibilities.

II. Scope of Temporary Health and Safety Measures

The Nyack Library operates per relevant law and Executive Orders, including those pertaining to mandatory workforce and building occupancy reductions to facilitate social distancing and reduce the opportunity for the spread of dangerous health conditions. Therefore, the temporary practices in this Policy may be further modified by the Library Director as needed to conform with relevant Orders increasing or decreasing health and safety measures.

III. Public Services and Activities

Until the Board of Trustees votes to revoke this temporary policy, the following limits on Library services and activities may be put into effect in varying degrees of restriction at the discretion of the Library Director based on meeting health and safety guidelines as an employer and for public service:

• Curbside pickup of circulating Library materials
• Limited public access to stacks, collections and other Library resources
• Limited hours of operation both in the number of days and hours per day
• Limited occupancy of building including staff and public to meet social distance and capacity guidelines
• Limited public seating and limited time periods for patrons to use Library space for individual or family group reading, study or work
• Limited public computer use including time limits and requirement to be a Nyack Library cardholder in good standing
• Limited volunteer services
• No Fines or Fees on late materials
• No on-site meeting room use by the public

IV. Safety Practices for the Public

Until the Board of Trustees votes to revoke this temporary policy, the Library will require all people on the premises to abide by the following safety practices:

• All persons must wear face masks which cover the mouth and nose in public areas.
• All persons must maintain a minimum of 6′ social distance on Library property.
• Patrons should abide by physical and visual barriers and signage regarding appropriate safe behavior, including service delivery requirements, expectations and methods and directional flows that may be required to support safe distancing measures. For example, only approach public services staff when addressed and directed to come forward.

In the event any safety requirement is not practicable on the basis of age or disability, the Library Director should be contacted to explore a reasonable accommodation.

V. Library Responsibilities to Employees

Health and Safety Supplies Provided to Employees

The Library will maintain a supply of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) that will be made available to staff to provide protection as they perform their job duties. PPE in the form of disposable masks and gloves will available in each work area for employees to access as needed throughout the day. The Library will provide employees access to personal cleaning supplies such as hand sanitizer and to sanitizing wipes suitable for cleaning work surfaces and technology equipment. The Library will remind staff to wash or sanitize their hands frequently throughout their work shift. The Library will modify work spaces to accommodate 6′ safe distance practices, including the addition of physical barriers and the relocation of work spaces as required to maintain Library operations.

The Library will supply each employee with a Face Shield for use when dealing directly with the public, working in a situation where a 6′ social distance cannot be maintained, or when handling materials being returned to the Library. The Library will provide employees with smocks or similar coverings to protect clothing. Each employee is responsible for wearing PPE in accordance with its design, and for removing and disposing of it in trash receptacle. Each employee is responsible for sanitizing their face shield and other reusable protective coverings and storing them safely by keeping in their desk, assigned locker or taking it home at the end of their shift.

The Library will follow all applicable laws and regulations for ensuring the safety and welfare of their employees. Staff who have specific health and safety concerns due to underlying health conditions should notify the Library Director or HR Specialist so those concerns can be addressed.

Training

The Library will provide ongoing training to staff regarding the proper use and disposal of Personal Protective Equipment and the cleaning and sanitizing of surfaces.

Facilities Cleaning Maintenance

The Library facility, furniture and equipment will be cleaned and sanitized in accordance to Center for Disease Control guidelines using Environmental Protection Agency approved cleaning products and techniques. The Library will maintain cleaning logs on site that document date, time, and scope of cleaning.

Public Service policies

Supplementing the Behavior Policy during the Pandemic Emergency, the Library will modify the policy to address the requirement for patrons to wear masks covering their mouth and nose and to adhere to social distancing measures while receiving or using Library services as a measure of protection for employees. In addition, the Library will monitor the number of patrons entering the building for services to ensure that 6′ social distance and building capacity requirements are met and maintained.

VI. Employee Responsibilities

• Employees will wear face masks when they enter, leave or move throughout the building so they are protected in case a situation arises when they cannot maintain 6′ social distance. Employees will use gloves when they handle materials, or interact with the public. Employees may choose to use their own personal face masks in place of disposable masks.
• Employees will complete a confidential daily health questionnaire before the start of their work shift per the requirements of New York State.
• Employees will start and end each work shift by using cleaning supplies to wipe down desks, phones, office equipment and other frequently touched surfaces in assigned work areas.
• Employees will maintain 6′ social distance while interacting with the public and with other staff.
• Employees will wear face shields in addition to face masks when they are interacting with the public and cannot maintain a 6′ distance, or remain behind a desk shield.
• Employees will wear gloves when handling materials or interacting with the public
• Employees will wash their hands or use hand sanitizer before and after handling returned materials, or interacting with an individual patron. The Library will provide hand sanitizer in each work area.
• Employees will self-determine if they need to wear disposable clothing cover to further protect themselves while working with materials or serving patrons in the workplace.
• Employees will follow good hygiene practices and avoid touching eyes, mouth and nose, and will follow guidelines to sanitize hands and equipment frequently.
• Employees will monitor their general health, and will notify their supervisor if they cannot report for their shift due to illness.
• Employees will notify the Library Director if they are unable to work due to exposure to COVID-19 through personal illness, the illness of household members, or the notification from government contact tracers that they have been exposed to someone diagnosed with the disease. If notification occurs during a work shift, the employee agrees to self-isolate in the designated isolation room until they can leave the premises. All employees in contact with the employee will be notified of the potential exposure and advised to seek further information from their medical doctor. Employees will be expected to comply with quarantine measures as outlined by public health authorities. The work area of the employee will be evacuated and cordoned off for a period of 24 hours after which time it will be deep cleaned.
• Current employees and any employees hired during the period covered by this policy will sign an acknowledgment that they have read and understood the Nyack Library Services During the Pandemic Emergency Policy.

VII. Isolation Room

The Library will designate a room where anyone, staff or patron, who becomes sick while on the library premises, can wait for further assistance to safely exit the building. The Library will cordon off the area that the individual occupied and the area will be off limits for a 24 hour period. The area will be thoroughly cleaned and sanitized before being reopened. The Library will notify staff and others regarding the potential exposure to the individual while maintaining the individual’s confidentiality.

VIII. Communication

To aid the community and the staff in honoring the requirements of this policy, the Library will transmit the content of this policy through email, social media, age-appropriate, multi-lingual signage, print, video and audio channels to communicate this message in a manner consistent with our mission and our identity as a welcoming and accessible resource to the community. The Library will communicate this policy to all vendors and visitors to the building.

IX. Anti-Discrimination

Nyack Library does not and shall not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion (creed), gender, gender expression, age, national origin (ancestry), disability, marital status, sexual orientation, or military status, in any of its activities or operations

X. Enforcement

Adherence to these practices shall be enforced as a requirement until such time as this temporary policy is revoked.

Approved by the Nyack Library Board of Trustees June 8, 2020