Pregnancy Light Duty Policy

Transcription

1 1 ATTACHMENT 2 (01-08) Pregnancy Light Duty Policy I. PURPOSE It is the purpose of this policy to establish guidelines relating to Temporary Light Duty for sworn employees during pregnancy. It is the purpose of the Portland Fire Bureau to provide equal employment opportunities to all members. At the same time, employment and assignment decisions must consider all aspects of employment that may prove detrimental to the heath, welfare and safety of any member and/or member of the public. II. POLICY It is the policy of the PFB to provide pregnant employees an opportunity to continue to participate in the work force during pregnancy. This policy is to implement the provisions of a Temporary Alternate Non-Hazardous Duty assignment for pregnant employees. Pregnant employees who are able to work must be permitted to do so on the same conditions as other employees if they are able to fully perform their regularly assigned job duties. III. REPORTING AND PROCESSING PREGNANCY/MATERNITY LEAVE. A. EMPLOYEE S RESPONSIBILITY 1. If an employee becomes pregnant, they may notify, or cause to be notified, their Company Officer stating the estimated time of absence from duty. 2. To notify the Bureau the employee must submit a Medical Release- Pregnancy Form that verifies the member is pregnant, identifies any physical restrictions to apply during the light duty assignment, and states how long the restrictions apply. (See attachment) 3. The employee and their physician must complete a Risk/Performance Advisory Form. (See attachment) 4. The employee is responsible, with the advice of their physician to determine how long they will continue working in their assigned

2 2 position. A member is not required to accept a light duty assignment. However, they are encouraged to consider a light duty assignment because of the unpredictable nature of emergency responses. There is potential risk to a pregnant employee from activities associated with normal operational duties including firefighting, hazardous material response and EMS exposures. The employee may request light duty at any time during their pregnancy. IV. PROCEDURE 1. Once the department has knowledge that the employee is pregnant and the employee has requested light duty, they will be eligible for consideration for a light duty assignment in accordance with the Temporary Light Duty Position Policy. 2. The employee can remain in a light duty position until they are physically unable to perform their light duty assignment as certified by their physician. 3. Use of sick and vacation leave: a) Once the employee is unable to perform their light duty assignment they shall be granted leave in accordance with Federal Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 and the Oregon Family Leave Act (ORS through ), and as designated in the city s personnel rules and/or administrative procedures. The leave shall be in accordance with G.O G.O. 31 SICK LEAVE will be recognized as part of this policy where applicable.

3 3 V. PARENTAL LEAVE See G.O. 30 page 7 Article XI Family Leave/Parental leave. VI. TRAINING While on light duty, non-hazardous status the employee will participate in department-level training classes that other fire personnel are undergoing, as long as the class activities do not pose any risk to the employee. VII. Uniform 1. While assigned to an operations position, pregnant employees will be required to wear the specified uniform and all the safety equipment. 2. While assigned to temporary light duty employees will wear maternity uniforms issued from logistics, or civilian attire if approved by management. VIII. RETURN TO REGULAR ASSIGNMENT 1. The employee shall submit a Medical Release signed by the employee s physician indicating the employee is released to full duty, with no restrictions. The member must be in compliance with General Order NO. 49 prior to returning to full duty status. 2. Upon an employee s request to return to a full duty assignment the PFB will reinstate the employee to their regular assigned duty. IX. PROBATIONARY FIREFIGHTER PROCEDURES This policy covers employees who have successfully completed probation.

4 4 PORTLAND FIRE BUREAU FIREFIGHTER RISK/PERFORMANCE ADVISORY FOR PHYSICIAN/EMPLOYEE The intent of this document is to inform any physician and pregnant firefighter in understanding the risks to the mother if the mother continues in a full-duty assignment. Current Federal Equal Employment Opportunity legislation and recent related Supreme Court decisions prohibit the Fire Department from routinely requiring that pregnant firefighters be in a light-duty assignment during their pregnancy for the protection of the mother. However, for the pregnant employee who chooses to be transferred to light duty or whose physician restricts her from performing full duty for the term of the pregnancy, light-duty assignments are available. Maternity light duty will be an assignment in a low-risk situation where the treating physician s restrictions can be accommodated, such as in an office setting. The pregnant employee s acceptance of light duty will not result in reduced pay or benefits. EXPOSURE RISKS The Portland Fire Department makes every effort to protect its personnel from the risks inherent in firefighting/paramedic duties, including extensive and ongoing training programs, standard operating and safety procedures for emergency incidents that reflect safety concerns as a priority, and high quality protective clothing, equipment, and self-contained breathing apparatus, which comply with appropriate OROSHA Standards. Much of the available literature regarding the exposures identified in this document suggests that the fetus is significantly more vulnerable to these risks than the mother. Further, current literature regarding the exact nature of the risk of human exposure to certain toxic and dangerous elements and materials is not conclusive since highly toxic products cannot be safely tested on humans. Listed below are typical exposures to which all firefighters and/or paramedics are subjected in the routine performance of their duties whether they are assigned to a fire apparatus or a mobile rescue care unit. Because firefighters/paramedics are subject to responding to emergency incidents of so many different types, the list is not inclusive--there is no limit to what they could be exposed to--but the following potential exposures are typical: Frequent exposure to communicable diseases through aerosol (airborne suspension) droplet exposures and percutaneous (through the skin) exposures (including needle sticks, bites, eyes, or mucous membrane); communicable diseases including but not limited to meningococcal infections,

5 5 POTENTIAL EXPOSURES 1. Tuberculosis, Measles, Syphilis, Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS), Hepatitis A, Hepatitis B, Non-A and Non-B Hepatitis, and Rabies. 2. Frequent exposure to toxic gases contained in the smoke that is produced by fire, including but not limited to asphyxiants and irritants (both sensory and pulmonary). Specific gases that are released by many common materials when burning include carbon monoxide (abundant in most fire atmospheres), hydrogen cyanide (frequently released), carbon dioxide (usually present in large quantities), acrolein (frequently present), hydrogen chloride (formed from the combustion of chlorine containing materials, notable PVC), and exposure to atmospheres containing insufficient oxygen. 3. Frequent exposure to excessive heat during firefighting operations, which is even more harmful in the moisture-filled atmosphere of a fire to which water is being applied since the moisture facilitates the transfer of heat energy. In these excessively hot environments, the body is less able to rid itself of the heat burden and the core body temperature can elevate to over 101 degrees. 4. Possible exposure to materials at fires or other emergencies, which have been identified by the Department of Transportation as extremely dangerous. Extremely dangerous materials are described as those which can cause death or disabling injury on brief exposure or which are extremely volatile flammable liquids or gases, or detonable materials. 5. Exposure to medical emergencies in hostile situations (i.e., shooting or stabbing incidents) and exposure to violent, hostile, combative patients with, on many occasions, only one person for assistance for the first few minutes. JOB PERFORMANCE RISKS Listed below are routine fireground and emergency medical service delivery tasks, which all firefighters are subject to performing, whether they are assigned to a fire apparatus or a rescue unit. While this list is not exhaustive, it does include a variety of typical tasks. These duties are performed in all weather conditions, including extreme heat, and precipitation; and the fireground activities are performed while wearing approximately 50 pounds (weight before saturation with water) of required protective clothing, including helmet, firefighting protective pants and coat, and self-contained breathing apparatus. At a working fire, the fireground duties would normally be performed for a minimum of 30 minutes and occasionally last for several hours.

6 6 In performing the essential functions within an approved class specification, a firefighter s duty may include the following specific tasks: 1. Lifting, both from overhead and dead weight positions, a variety of equipment (e.g., hose, ladders, fans, rescue saws, portable lights). When assistance is available, one person s share of weight load would commonly be pounds; however, it is not uncommon for a firefighter to have to carry equipment weighing 65 pounds or more without assistance. (Weights are in addition to the 50 pounds of protective clothing.) 2. Climbing ladders while lifting/carrying a charged hose line, another ladder (14-16 ), or other equipment weighing pounds while wearing the 60 pounds of protective clothing. 3. Wielding an axe, shoveling burned debris, moving furniture, bending, twisting, pushing and pulling, frequently from awkward positions. 4. Assisting another firefighter in advancing 250 feet of 1-3/4 hose with 100 pounds per square inch nozzle pressure flowing at the rate of 150 gallons/minute pressure (weight of hose and water will be approximately 360 pounds), while wearing the 60 pounds of protective clothing. 5. Upward thrusting of pike poles into ceilings to open up access to attic spaces. 6. Crawling through and performing tasks in confined places (e.g., scuttle holes, small window opening, attics). 7. Walking on roofs and other (often wet) surfaces where footing is precarious and/or walking in smoke-charged rooms with very limited visibility while carrying equipment and/or performing emergency tasks. 8. Climbing several flights of stairs carrying hose, rescue saws, ladders, other equipment weighting as much as pounds per firefighter, in addition to the 60 pounds of protective clothing. 9. Lifting patients from dead weight positions under emergency response conditions; patient weight of 200 pounds is common, weight of is not uncommon, and weight in the range is rare but occurs occasionally. While additional personnel are usually available to assist with particularly heavy patients, the confined spaces in which the lifting occurs is one which frequently puts the burden entirely on one or two of the responding personnel (e.g., lifting patients out of wrecked automobiles, down hallways and stairways, out of bathtub/shower enclosures). A firefighter is a member of an emergency response team, and it is imperative that each member of the team be capable of effective job performance. At both fire and medical emergencies the unrestricted performance of each member of the team may be necessary to perform life-saving activities in which seconds are critical, and assistance from additional personnel may not be immediately available.

7 7 A firefighter should not be released to full duty if there would be any restriction placed on her performing any of the listed duties during her pregnancy. As physician to (patient s name), I acknowledge and understand the contents of the Firefighter Risk/Performance Advisory for Physician. Physician s Name Typed or Printed Physician s Signature Date Office Phone: Employee s Name Typed or Printed Employee s Signature Date

8 8 PORTLAND FIRE BUREAU MEDICAL RELEASE - PREGNANCY (Patient s name) is pregnant at this time. The patient s estimated date of delivery is. The patient: is released to full fire, rescue, and paramedic duties. If the patient is released to full duty, this release will remain in effect until. OR The patient: is not released to full fire, rescue and paramedic duties. If the patient is not released to full duty, the patient may work light duty until. List any physical restrictions that apply to patient. The estimated date of return to full duty after delivery is. Physician s Name Typed or Printed Physician s Signature Date Office Phone: cc: Patient s Physician Patient