LYNN — Department heads have returned to City Hall this week, with all other employees scheduled to start returning next Monday.
But the public will continue to be barred from the building for at least another month, according to Mayor Thomas M. McGee.
On Monday, all department heads returned to the building on a full-time basis as part of the first phase of the City Hall reopening process. In past weeks, they had been working on-site sporadically.
Next Monday, the second phase will commence, and will consist of all other employees starting to return on staggered schedules to comply with state social distancing restrictions, in terms of limiting the amount of staff in each office, McGee said.
No more than 50 percent of the workforce will be on-site at any given time and all employees will be expected to conduct daily temperature checks at home each morning before coming to work, McGee said.
“This building was built for a much larger staff than we currently have,” said McGee. “There’s more than enough space to comply with the social distancing needed in the building.”
Staff members will be separated into “A” and “B” teams, with each group alternating between working on-site for a week, followed by a week of remote work. Department heads are exempt from the schedule and will continue to work out of the building each day, McGee said.
In addition to developing that “A-B” schedule, department heads are working to implement the COVID-19 checklist, a requirement for all businesses and government offices, as they prepare for the return of their employees.
For example, department heads are working to ensure their respective employees have the technology needed to complete their work on-site and remotely, and will direct staff members as to what their responsibilities are on- and off-site.
Employees are expected to take temperature checks each morning and certify their results upon coming to work each day. Staff members with temperatures above 100.3 degrees Fahrenheit or those exhibiting other COVID-19 symptoms will not be permitted to work in the building, McGee said.
“We anticipate people are going to be truthful and honest,” said McGee. “It’s important for all of us to stay healthy.”
The Department of Public Works is installing plexiglass shields, which will separate office spaces, in the building this week. Although the state recommendation is for offices to operate at 25 percent capacity, that restriction does not apply to public buildings as a whole, McGee said.
The third phase, which includes limited public access to City Hall, the Lynn Public Library and the Department of Public Works building, is still four to six weeks away, McGee said.
Before that happens, McGee said a plan needs to be developed that ensures public and employee safety and follows additional guidance from the state. For instance, all members of the public will be required to wear face coverings when inside public buildings.
In the meantime, the city’s working group, including department heads, is working to ensure city operations and services continue to run efficiently on a remote basis, said McGee, who noted it was “impressive” how quickly the team was able to implement a remote operation during the early phases of the outbreak.
“A lot of people have taken to the ability to pay bills online,” said McGee. “In the past they would have come to the building. I think the public is starting to be comfortable with that. We’re doing it differently and I think in a lot of ways we’ve learned to handle it in a way that works just as efficiently.”