Ascend’s President and CEO Phil McDivitt discusses steps company is taking to manage coronavirus
March 18, 2020
Our primary focus is the safety and well-being of our people, their families and communities around the world. Our entire company is engaged in the effort to slow the spread of coronavirus.
Based on the guidance of the Centers for Disease Control, the World Health Organization and national and local governments where we operate, we have instituted the following measures to reduce the likelihood of spreading the coronavirus:
- Employees not directly related to the safe production and distribution of products are working remotely.
- Access to our manufacturing facilities is restricted to employees and health screenings are conducted on everyone seeking entry.
- People who exhibit cold or flu-like symptoms are not allowed at any Ascend site.
- Contact between people is being limited by a no-handshake policy and virtual meetings.
- All non-essential travel, including conferences, is cancelled until further notice.
- Employees and contractors who have traveled to a CDC Level 3 area or returned from a cruise ship must self-quarantine for 14 days.
- The frequency of cleaning and sanitization procedures has been increased.
- Health alerts reminding employees to wash their hands regularly, avoid touching their faces and to cover coughs and sneezes are regularly communicated via email and in virtual meetings.
- An internal COVID Response portal has been established to communicate up-to-date information to all employees and contractors.
Our sites remain operational. In this time of uncertainty, we want to continue to live our values and show our people, our communities and our customers that we care and that we’re committed to staying agile and operating our plants safely without disruption.
Thank you for your continued cooperation in halting the spread of the virus.
Phil McDivitt
President and CEO