Employers confronting legal issues surrounding coronavirus.

As the novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV ) continues to present an international health threat, S.C. companies who do business internationally should be aware of employment laws regarding health concerns, legal advisors say.

If your job, or your employees, require international travel, attorneys at Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart, a national employment law firm with offices in South Carolina, recommend consistently checking the Centers for Disease Control and State Department websites for coronavirus updates. Information changes daily.

"If they travel to China now, they need to be sure that they can get into the country, and when they're returning, they may want to be aware that they're going to be routed to one of 11 airports and have a check when they come through as to their health, and be asked some questions," said Kathy Dudley Helms, a shareholder in the Columbia office.

Travelers returning to the U.S. from China's Hubei Province, the epicenter of the outbreak, will be quarantined for 14 days under new federal guidelines.

"We've talked with a lot of clients about looking at essential travel, and perhaps, rescheduling other (travel)," Helms said.

Helms said are other legal issues employers should consider if their employees are traveling overseas, including the Americans with Disabilities Act and regulations under the Occupational Health and Safety Administration, which has information regarding Coronavirus on its website. Many of the statutes employers are already familiar with could apply to employee travel to high-risk coronavirus areas.

"The Americans with Disabilities Act could potentially offer protection to an employee who has a disability or medical condition that may put them at a higher risk of performing their job or traveling," said Ogletree Deakins shareholder Michael Eckard of the Charleston office. "Those types of things need to be considered on an individual basis, and we would recommend a consultation with the company's human resources and legal professionals."

Employers should remember that the ADA includes confidentiality provisions, even if disability is not the issue. Medical information must be kept separate from employment information, and employers may be limited in what medical information they can request about an employee. Employees have a right to know if there is a health risk in the workplace, but they do not have a right to know what individual is at risk or if a person has symptoms, legal experts...

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