Tuesday, April 12, 2021 – 4:21PM
My fellow Shipmates,
Spring is here. Schools are opening, COVID-19 is on the decline, and our spirits and attitudes return to the pre-COVID-19 period. However, it is not yet the time to let our guards down. The distribution of the vaccine to government essential workers is presently available by appointment with the St. Mary’s County Health Department to all AMEWAS employees who reside or work in St. Mary’s County, MD. We are closely monitoring the guidelines in other states in which our employees reside and work to determine if and when vaccines will be available to them.
Although not mandatory, I encourage each employee to seriously consider taking immediate advantage of this opportunity to be vaccinated. According to the CDC, obtaining the COVID-19 vaccine will not only reduce your probability of contracting the virus but will also greatly reduce its effects if you contract it in the near future. My wife and I, because of our age, were among the first to receive the vaccine over four months ago with no adverse symptoms. The CDC has helpful information on their website regarding the vaccines. With great optimism for the near future.
Warmest Regards,
Chuck Jeffries
Tuesday, October 6, 2020 – 2:22PM
Shipmates,
Fall has arrived. Warm days and cool evenings will soon turn the landscape into a kaleidoscope of colors. It is one of my favorite times of the year here in Maryland. Also at this time of the year, we start planning for the upcoming holidays. This year, however, the virus has affected many of the company functions we planned on hosting. Most recently, we adjusted our plans for the longevity awards. Instead of a group function, we altered the presentation of the awards on an individual basis. We started that evolution this past Monday and will continue the individual presentations in the AMEWAS conference room for the next two weeks.
We anticipate the virus will also impact the year-end Christmas party, and as such, we have decided to cancel this special event in consideration of health and safety of our employees and their guests. I am personally very disappointed concerning this issue since it is one of the only functions where AMEWAS can show our appreciation and all get together as a company to socialize, dine and celebrate a very special time of year.
Our HR staff has been working on some other ideas to show our appreciation. Next week they will formalize those ideas. Please keep a close eye on your U.S. mail, as information will be sent out to each employee at your private resident.
Warmest Regards,
Chuck Jeffries
Monday, August 17, 2020 – 08:00 AM
My fellow “Shipmates”,
The above salutation has been used in the US Navy for more than two centuries. It identifies all those teammates whose actions play a significant role in the “ships” success. Our job as shipmates is to do our best in the tasks we are handed. Together, we achieve more and we can make extraordinary things happen even in times of adversity.
Since my first address to you in April this year concerning the Covid pandemic we have witnessed extraordinary dedication to ensuring the Naval Air Test Center meets commitments and challenges made prior to the onset of the pandemic. So far in this year I have had the privilege of presenting more than 26 “BZ” awards to our shipmates. Our government customers voiced recommendations for these awards describing the “above and beyond” actions taken by the individual.
As we approach the seventh month of this pandemic, we are beginning to see a weekly decrease in reported new cases as well as significant decrease in the mortalities in both Calvert and St Mary’s counties where most of us live. Considering all of you are “essential workers” and a great number continue to report on base almost every day, its apparent you have been following the guidelines identified by our government customers as well your personal efforts to protect others. Please continue what is working for you.
We still have challenges in the weeks and months to follow, however we are much better as a country, community and company to cope with what was an “unknown” on the outset. As we recover from this virus, it is my hope and belief the anxiety it first generated will gradually dissipate to fair winds and following seas.
“In order to carry a positive action we must develop here a positive vision.”
Dalai Lama
Warmest Regards,
Chuck Jeffries
Wednesday, April 22, 2020 – 7:05PM
My fellow shipmates,
It has been a little over two months since the first COVID-19 cases were first reported in the U.S. We are fast approaching more than 900,000 reported cases in the United States. The Maryland Department of Health makes a daily report on the statistics for each county. To date they have recorded 112 cases and 3 deaths in St Mary’s County.
https://coronavirus.maryland.gov/
To my knowledge, fortunately, the AMEWAS workforce has thus far been spared from this scourge. I suspect and believe this is because each of you have followed and exercised the sensible measures identified by the health professionals and your supervisors. As we try to return to normalcy in the work environment, I encourage each of you to continue to exercise the same precautions that has spared you and our other shipmates from this menace.
Thank you all for your consideration, patience and continued performance for our customers during these challenging times. The light at the end of the tunnel is getting brighter each day. I leave you with the following quotes of encouragement.
“And one has to understand that braveness is not the absence of fear but rather the strength to keep on going forward despite the fear.” – Paulo Coelho
“Difficulties are meant to rouse, not discourage. The human spirit is to grow strong by conflict.” – William Ellery Channing
“We are only as strong as we are united, as weak as we are divided.” – J.K. Rowling
Sincerely and Respectfully,
CHUCK JEFFRIES
Wednesday, April 22, 2020 – 4:00PM
All,
It seems as though many of us have settled in and are operating in a “new normal” mode. We have many employees who continue to support the important mission on-base and, fortunately, we have been successful at fighting the spread of this virus. We appreciate everyone’s dedication and professionalism during these very strange times – and through some reports, we believe we can see some light at the end of this tunnel. It’s not very bright at this point, but it’s there.
The government has been providing some protective equipment (masks and gloves) to personnel supporting on-base operations and, from what I hear, it’s going well – considering the conditions. Please remember to exercise proper distancing and safety precautions as you carry out your day. For those who are having difficulty in obtaining masks, please contact HR.
One difficult decision we had to make as a result of the current situation, is that we have been forced to cancel the annual summer picnic here in Maryland. Other picnics at satellite offices are still planned, but we are monitoring the situations at those locations to see what impact the future may have. These events are a great opportunity to get families and co-workers together and have always been a lot of fun. We’re going to miss that this year. We will be looking at other ways to make up for it down the road.
In closing, we appreciate all of the flexibility and professionalism our entire workforce has shown and it confirms that our workforce is the absolute best.
Thank you,
Jim
Monday, March 30, 2020 – 7:00PM
All,
Governor Hogan announced the signing of a “Stay-at-Home” Executive Order which will go into effect tonight (30 March 2020) at 8:00pm. The full text of the Executive Order can be downloaded through a link on our AMEWAS website (click here). Essentially, the order requires all Maryland Residents to stay in their homes except for going out to seek medical attention, for obtaining food, or conducting or participating in “essential activities.” The Executive Order cites specific monetary and civil penalties for disobeying this Stay-at-Home order and there are several exceptions contained in the order. I recommend each employee read the order to clearly understand your roles and obligations as a citizens. Let’s all take this seriously.
As members of the Defense Industrial Base, all AMEWAS employees traveling to and from work are still permitted to do so under this order, as Defense Contract work is considered essential however; we are continuing to support a maximum teleworking environment to assist in the main goal of this order and the guidelines of the CDC — reducing the spread of the coronavirus.
Supervisors – please make sure this update and the text of governor Hogan’s executive order are given the widest dissemination possible and that all employees who are teleworking during this crisis are providing logs (on a weekly basis) of their daily activities.
Everyone – Please Stay Safe,
Jim
Wednesday, March 25 – 6:22 PM
All,
Just to keep everyone updated on what we know…
We continue to work in a maximum teleworking environment and many have seemed to adjust well under the circumstances. If anyone has any resource- or process-related issues, please contact your supervisor to see if we can assist. The government continues to operate in this mode and the base is NOT CLOSED. Some individuals have been asking whether the base will be restricting access to certain mission-essential individuals – but as of right now, the base is OPEN with no restricted access. To our knowledge, there is no plan to change this.
Governor Hogan released a statement today keeping schools closed for an additional 4 weeks. CDC and Johns Hopkins continue to report nearly 10,000 (sometimes more) new confirmed cases each day and the Surgeon General has reported that we are still not out of the woods from a pandemic standpoint.
While the number of cases in the southern Maryland area (Calvert, St. Mary’s, and Charles counties) are still relatively low, they are increasing and we have reports of individuals on-base who have tested positive. Again – the numbers are low and our teleworking environment and social distancing protocols could be helping that out. So please continue to follow the CDC’s guidelines and avoid contact with others to the greatest extent possible. Stopping the spread of this is going to be the best way to minimize its impact and to begin the downward slope of this virus.
For those teleworking, please continue to stay in close contact with your supervisors and provide a log to your supervisor at the end of each week detailing your accomplishments.
For all employees with AMEWAS Health Care: Cigna has advised us that they will waive costs for COVID-19 testing-related care through May 31, 2020. If you need screening, diagnosis, or testing for COVID-19 and are asked to pay upfront services, please don’t worry — you will be reimbursed once claims are processed.
If you are not enrolled in a Cigna plan, please reach out to your insurance company to see how they will support you.
There are additional laws that will be implemented soon related to Emergency Family Medical Leave Act (EFMLA) and Emergency Sick Leave. Information will be sent out early next week from HR, so please keep an eye out for that and feel free to ask questions if you have any.
Everyone – please stay safe out there and do your part to quell this spread.
Thank you,
Jim
Sunday, March 22 – 4:55 PM
All,
As we get ready for another week during this pandemic, we wanted to bring you up on what we know and ensure everyone in AMEWAS is 100% on the same page. We have multiple operating locations and we are working on making sure we inform each location appropriately.
NAS Patuxent River is still open for normal operations, but operating on a maximum teleworking posture. This means that, where possible – and in the best interests of the government, people are permitted to work remotely. This does not preclude individuals from going on-site and performing mission-critical support. It just permits people who can do meaningful tasks, to do them remotely. The base is NOT closed. There is no list of mission-critical personnel at the gate and access to the base at this time is not restricted.
Part of the Defense Industrial Base, AMEWAS has worked very closely with the government and have identified certain areas that must remain functional and are not conducive to teleworking, such as certain PMA support personnel, Front Desk operations (visitor control) and Shipping & Receiving to name a few. There are other employees who have been designated by the government as “essential personnel” who are being required to report, as normal. We have coordinated manning of these essential areas with the appropriate supervisors and employees, and this seems to be working quite well. Others have continued to work on-site, maintaining proper social-distancing protocols and taking precautions to prevent the spread of this virus. While we are in uncharted waters, we are still an important part of NAVAIR and their important mission to men and women deployed worldwide. There are still very important tasks to be performed.
As we continue to work under these conditions, please stay informed, take appropriate precautions, and stay in contact with your supervisor. Supervisors, please stay in contact with the personnel under your supervision. Please check your email (both NMCI and your AMEWAS email) regularly – and if you’re not sure of something, don’t hesitate to ask.
As a reminder – all teleworking personnel are required to document their accomplishments and turn in reports to their supervisors weekly. This should have been accomplished last Friday, so if you have not done so already, please provide your supervisor with this report as soon as possible. Supervisors, please provide these reports to the next higher person in your chain-of-command.
If you are not able to check your email, please check AMEWAS’ webpage for COVID-19 updates.
Thank you,
Jim
Wednesday, March 18 – 12:21 PM
Everyone,
We have a very diverse workforce – a workforce that comes from varying backgrounds, education, and experience. During this mass teleworking arrangement we’re working under, we must ensure everyone is performing ethically – and working on tasks that will be productive, bettering yourselves in the long run. Here are a few more notes and guidelines as we go through this:
While teleworking, employees are expected to spend quality time either working on unclassified actual work products or enhancing their knowledge and skills by researching topics relative to their position and projects there are working on. There is a LOT of unclassified information on the Internet on topics such as Electronic Warfare, Electromagnetic Environmental Effects, Organizational effectiveness, OSHA requirements, Machining or Wiring techniques, MS Excel, MS PowerPoint, MS Access, and on and on. Employees should never run out of material to read or tutorials to view. It will only take a computer, some time, and some initiative. Please spend this time enhancing your knowledge.
Some of our positions have been deemed either “Mission-Critical” to on-going fleet requirements or “Industrial Operations,” which are positions needed to maintain facilities in an Operational Status. Those who are mission-critical have been notified of their status. The categorization of individuals may be changing in the coming days, so please continue to check your email regularly. Individuals in positions deemed “Industrial Operations,” such as Shipping and Receiving and Building Security, should be ready to contribute to maintaining an “Open” posture for the facilities. We will be working to minimize individuals’ exposure during this period while maintaining an important presence at these government locations.
We also must document what everyone is doing while teleworking. If we are ever queried about what an individual employee or group of employees did while teleworking, we must be able to quickly hand over work-logs of what every person teleworking has been doing. If we are asked to produce evidence of telework, either on a large or small scale, we can’t have people scrambling or gun-decking (if you have to, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_deck) a bunch of logs. We don’t need a term paper on some long story; just detailed-enough notes on what you did while teleworking.
Please stay in contact with your supervisors while teleworking. Speak with them about what you are doing and ask for suggestions on what you can read up on or research. Supervisors, please stay in contact with your employees and offer suggestions on training or research topics.
For those working in an industrial or hangar/ramp environment, please consider:
OSHAcademy offers an extensive list of FREE online safety training courses and resources that comply with OSHA training guidelines and conform to ANSI/ASSE Z490.1, ANSI/AIHA Z10, and CSA Z1000 standards. OSHAcademy courses will help achieve OSHA compliance and SHARP/VPP certification. While you are in a teleworking status, you may take advantage of these FREE training opportunities to comply with contractual requirements as appropriate. Please access the site to complete any of the FREE courses that you feel would be beneficial to you providing support to your contract. Document the training that you complete and provide that information to your supervisor on a weekly basis.
The link below will take you directly to the OSHAcademy website to access programs, course materials and information that will help you train to better manage workplace safety.
Professional Safety and Health Training Courses
I appreciate everyone’s support and patience during this extraordinary time.
Regards, and Stay Safe,
Jim
Wednesday, March 18 – 9:22 AM
All,
We continue to receive information regarding telework direction, with some information conflicting with others. While it’s challenging trying to figure out what – or what not to do during times like these, it’s not surprising we’re getting crossed signals. There are a lot of moving parts associated with decisions like this and there are several different Groups and Organizations we support. If you have questions, please feel free to contact your supervisor, Ops Manager, or our Corporate Staff.
The following bullets are quoted directly from an email sent this morning from Derek Greer (ACETEF, E3, ICE, TEMPEST, BMS):
- We must limit our contact with others per CDC recommendations (a must to limit virus spread). Please stay home as much as possible.
- Telework situation is in place for all employees unless they are specifically needed for a mission essential event.
- If you are unsure if you are mission essential, default to telework status until notified by your supervisor.
- There are very few mission essential employees currently. This could change as PEO / PMA priorities are vetted with NAWCAD leadership.
- Safety and health of our employees is most important. If anyone feels like they need to stay home for their health or family health/safety reasons, they are permitted to do so regardless of mission essential designation.
- For those employees working classified projects, limited onsite work is acceptable (i.e., if you need to come in for a couple hours to do something specific, then telework the rest of the week). Please coordinate with your supervisor.
Holly III is open for business but maximum teleworking is permitted. If you feel you can provide value from teleworking, by all means, do so. If you want to come and work from Holly III, you are permitted to do that too.
As always, please remember to record the tasking you are completing while teleworking and stay in touch with your supervisor.
Through our Employee Assistance Program (EAP), Syntrio, has designed an easy-to-share video that you can use to help ease some of their worries:
Covid-19 is a pandemic affecting life in general. Fortunately, you can take these simple precautions to lessen your exposure.
Ethical Snapshot Video: Virus Prevention
And finally, keep in mind that this virus is spreading rapidly and it is up to each of us to take precautions to minimize exposure and prevent further spreading.
Regards,
Jim
Tuesday, March 17 – 8:55 PM
All,
We have received additional guidance from the NAVAIR Deputy Commander and other DAITA Group representatives. We’re continuing to wait for more detailed guidance , but for now, this is the information we have:
Beginning tomorrow March 18, NAVAIR and subordinate commands will implement maximum-telework flexibility. In some areas, NAVAIR intends to continue limited, on-site operations to meet mission critical fleet and program needs, as long as the safety and welfare of our employees and families are not compromised. We are waiting for specifics on the scope of “limited on-site mission critical needs,” but for now, guidance is this:
If you can telework and provide support to your work centers, you are permitted to do so. If you feel you are unable to support your work center efficiently while teleworking and feel that your safety is not compromised, then you may report to your work center. If you feel as though your safety and welfare, or the safety and welfare of your family is in jeopardy, then you may telework. While teleworking, please remember:
Employees: Remember that while teleworking, you are in a duty-status and will be required to work within the confines of the off-site work environment. Answer any calls, queries, or emails you receive and work diligently, even if the circumstances are less than favorable. Log all activities and report these to your supervisor at the end of the week. Inform your supervisor of you intent to telework or report for regular duty.
Supervisors: if your employees telework, you must stay in contact with them and ensure they are performing meaningful work. They must also log their activities and report to you at the end of each week. Remember that teleworking is just a different work site. All standard work ethics apply.
Holly II and Holly III will be open for business with optional teleworking arrangements in effect.
This has been in the works for quite some time and I’m confident there will be some adjustments made. The government is being very flexible, and we need to be flexible in return.
For now, please follow this guidance. If you are sick or believe you have been in contact with someone who has been infected, please self-isolate yourself for a minimum of 14 days and seriously consider getting tested.
Stand-by for more information.
Monday, March 16 – 11:39 AM
All,
Information regarding the COVID-19 virus is coming in fast. Rather than wait to digest incoming stories, we’ve decided to get the information we know about out to you – in somewhat manageable chunks. We’re reviewing new information constantly and will update you as necessary.
NAVAIR:
Recent correspondence from Mr. Garry Newton (Deputy Command, NAVAIRSYSCOM) indicates that NAVAIR is taking significant steps towards preparing for a mass teleworking environment. There are several logistics hurdles – particularly technology hurdles – that have to be considered to pull this off and the Navy is going over those now. As we receive additional information, we will pass it along. At any time, if you have a question related to teleworking and its effect on you, please contact your supervisor or Program Manager.
MEETINGS:
On CDC guidance, meetings are now limited to 50 people or fewer. For official meetings directly related to a contract with greater than 50 people, the meeting organizer must have flag officer or SES approval. In short, if someone doesn’t NEED to meet in person, please consider other meeting options, such as telecons, email, Skype, MS Teams, etc.).
OFFICIAL TRAVEL:
DOD has banned all official travel , both international and domestic. Flag and SES leaders are authorized to grant exceptions for mission essential travel. At this point, there is no known mission-essential travel that will affect AMEWAS personnel.
UNOFFICIAL/PERSONAL TRAVEL
The State Department website (https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/traveladvisories) continues to restrict travel to Level 4 areas and are urging individuals to seriously reconsider travel to other Level 3 areas.
For those individuals considering voluntary, personal travel outside of the United States to a Level 3 or Level 4 area (see below), be advised that upon return, you will be required to self-quarantine for a minimum of 14 calendar days. For all Employees: On a case-by-case basis, if you have a valid teleworking agreement in place, and if circumstances permit teleworking, you may be permitted to do so. Please check with your supervisor and/or Program Manager for more details.
Level 4: China, Iran, South Korea
Level 3: Europe (Schengen Area): Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Monaco, San Marino, Vatican City, United Kingdom and Ireland: England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland
Please monitor your email to receive the most up-to-date information.
Regards,
Jim
Sunday, March 15, 2020 – 4:05 PM
All,
The COVID-19 virus continues to spread and we have learned that NAS Patuxent River is contemplating a base closure. But as of right now (15 March 2020 – 4:00 pm) the base is still open. Please watch for changes though local media or by calling (301) 342-BASE. If the base decides to close, we will work on getting get the word out as quickly as possible.
We are updating our www.amewas.com website with a link to all updates, including all emails sent previously. The link is not operational yet, but will be in the not-so-distant future.
For APSD Personnel Only: We have received notification that one individual who works in Bldg. 2186 has been tested for the virus, but there are NO RESULTS at this time. If the individual’s results come back NEGATIVE, and the base remains open, Monday will be a regular work day. If the results are NOT KNOWN as of Monday morning, all personnel who work in 2186 and Bldg 104 may opt to work from an alternate work location, or telework from home. Teleworking or working remotely is NOT mandatory – but is optional. If the results are POSITIVE, further guidance will be provided.
We continue to urge everyone to follow CDC guidelines regarding exposure prevention, and State Department guidelines on Travel Restrictions. We are continuing to monitor this situation closely and will provide additional updates as we receive them.
If you have any questions, please contact your supervisor or Program Manager.
Thank you,
Jim
Friday, March 13, 2020 – 1:47 PM
All Corporate Employees,
As all of you are aware, the COVID-19 virus continues to spread and is not making any of our lives easier. Many changes to our daily routines are evident at every turn and there continue to be changes and decisions that change our mode of operations. For this reason, the following information is effective Monday, 16 March.
For AMEWAS Corporate Employees Only: In the best interests, health, and welfare of our corporate workforce, we will begin permitting telework for our corporate staff. We are not requiring people to telework, only permitting it, with the following caveats:
- Purchasing, HR, and IT must have at least one person on-board during normal working hours. Supervisors in these areas must canvass their team to determine a rotating schedule and provide that schedule to the ELT ([email protected]).
- Every individual must have a signed telework agreement with proper approvals. Contact your supervisor if you have questions on obtaining a form.
- Every individual teleworking must log their workday and provide that log to their supervisors at the end of each week.
- Supervisors must maintain communications with their workforce to provide guidance, tasking, and general support. Supervisors are responsible for their teams.
- All personnel who opt to telework must be available during normal working hours by phone, email, and Microsoft Teams.
- For those who do not have a remote asset, please contact our IT department for further guidance.
- Please remember: we are in the annual review cycle and employees are expected to update their resumes and complete their Self-Appraisals.
The goal during this period is to maintain the highest quality of support to our government customers and our workforce. Just like every day, this takes a significant amount of dedication, loyalty, and professionalism. Working remotely may require us to work harder than normal to maintain the excellent level of support I know you all provide every day.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact your supervisor or me.
Regards,
Jim
Friday, March 13, 2020 – 1:34 PM
All,
As many have undoubtedly learned, Governor Hogan has declared a state of emergency and has ordered all schools in Maryland closed two weeks, beginning March 16th. This will clearly impact many of our employees, co-workers, and customers, and all of us are in what seems like uncharted territory. It would be an understatement to say that the Coronavirus is seriously impacting everyone’s life in one way or another, so we continue to urge everyone to take precautions to avoid exposure to this serious virus. Even in an office space environment, limiting contact with co-workers by using the phone or other tools to communicate can assist in limiting exposure. We should all think of better ways to communicate, while minimizing contact.
Currently, AMEWAS continues to operate as normal but are exploring options to keep our corporate office fully-functional while staying flexible with our workforce here. Working closely with the government, we have canceled all official OCONUS trips for the near future and are limiting official CONUS trips to mission-essential trips only. If you have official travel scheduled, please contact your PM and government lead to determine whether the trip is mission-essential. Many have also opted to cancel personal travel plans both to international and US locations to avoid the chance of exposure.
The government is making preparations to support remote work (teleworking) for its workforce. We have worked closely with the government and, for those able to provide unclassified contract support from a remote location, such as home, we are considering remote working arrangements as well. This becomes a challenge for those supporting classified work and employees who require on-site facilities or capabilities. But when faced with extenuating circumstances, we must look for extenuating solutions.
Contractually, to charge to a contract, individuals must perform “legitimate work” associated with the contract. Typically, this is done on-site under the guidance and auspices of supervisors, PMs, and government leads. When working under a teleworking environment, individuals must have three things in place: (a) a teleworking agreement (b) PM Approval, and (c) Documented Tasking detailing what work will be accomplished. To determine what tasking can be performed, it may be necessary to hold discussions with government leads to determine the scope and quantity of the tasking and to document evidence of task performance.
“Legitimate work,” while admittedly a loose term, may be work such as research and generation of white papers related to existing or future work load, training on processes / technical system / techniques, or research of related technical areas with deliverable documentation. Applicable training related to an individual’s job function may also qualify, such as OSHA training, topics related to a person’s work available through DAU, or other job-related coursework.
We are being asked to identify legitimate work for up to two weeks, which includes non-traditional positions that otherwise would not necessarily be telework eligible, like our touch labor technicians. This may be analyzing and recommending changes to existing work load, training on processes / technical system / techniques, research of related technical areas with deliverable documentation.
At some level, all telework performed must trace back to a SOW paragraph. Please work with your supervisor or PM in identifying contract content for this.
Regardless of the work being performed, anyone who works remotely will be required to log their work and report weekly to their supervisor.
Other corporate work that can be performed during this time is everyone’s Self-Evaluation and updates to resumes. The idea of maximizing productivity, even in a not-so-productive environment, it our main goal.
I realize these are difficult times for many, and there are many unknowns. We are trying our best to get information out to everyone quickly – while making sure the information is accurate.
Stand-by for more information.
Regards,
Jim
Thursday, 12 March 2020 – 10:29 AM
All,
AMEWAS, Inc. takes our employee’s and our customer’s health very seriously and in the wake of the current COVID-19 situation, we are trying to strike a balance between relaying factual information while minimizing rumor and conjecture. Yesterday, AMEWAS received unconfirmed information that an individual in southern Maryland may have been tested for COVID-19 and is awaiting official results. We do not have information as to whether this person has been exposed – only that they have been tested. Please understand that this is unconfirmed information and that AMEWAS does not have any direct information from any official source on this case. We believe it is important to give you information that we have – but to ensure everyone understands that this is not based on any facts AMEWAS is aware of. AMEWAS is fully operational and functioning on a regular work routine. There are no plans at this time for AMEWAS to change how we operate and we are monitoring this situation closely. If we obtain any additional information, we will pass this on as soon as practical.
For individuals planning travel, the State Department has updated information on Global Health Advisories and Emergency Notifications related to this pandemic (travel.state.gov). There are several Global Level 3 – Reconsider Travel, and some Level 4 – Do Not Travel Advisories on their website. If you are planning a trip, please visit this site for up-to-date details.
Please pass the word to all of your co-workers to check their Company Email regularly as this is the mode we will promulgate information.
The Center for Disease Control (CDC) website provides a wealth of current official information (cdc.gov) on the virus and I urge everyone to visit the website for information, statistics, and helpful information on what you can do to protect yourself. Additionally, please see the embedded graphic which may help everyone understand the differences between the Coronavirus, Seasonal Flu, and the Common Cold.
Regards,
Jim
Tuesday, 10 March, 2020 – 12:56 PM
All,
It has been difficult to do anything over the past couple of months without being bombarded by information (some reliable, some not-so) related to the coronavirus (COVID-19). The virus is spreading and there are many locations overseas that are quarantined or have travel restrictions. According to the Center for Disease Control (CDC), as of 9 March 2020, here in the U.S., there have been 423 confirmed cases of the virus throughout a total of 35 states, including the District of Columbia, with a total of 19 deaths US-wide. This figure is changing rapidly as health officials learn more about the virus and how it spreads. While these numbers are fluid, as of this writing, in Maryland we have seen 5 cases, California, 114, Florida, 14, and in Virginia, 2. Please note that these numbers are quite low when compared to the population of the country or any given state however; we urge everyone to take appropriate precautions, follow guidelines issued by the CDC, and maintain a level of concern as they continue their daily routine. This situation can change quickly. We will do our best to keep everyone informed as quickly as possible.
The COVID-19 virus can be very serious for several different categories of individuals, especially older adults and people with chronic medical conditions (e.g. Heart disease, diabetes, and Lung disease). The CDC is issuing updates on their website frequently on how to avoid exposure and what you should do if you feel you have been contaminated. I urge everyone to visit https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html for additional information.
AMEWAS has been in contract with senior NAVAIR officials to determine guidance on this issue and we have been speaking with our Counsel and Insurance Solutions Providers to determine what, if anything, may be needed if the virus spreads to our general area.
Our government customers have also been working closely with NAVAIR contracts, their General Counsel, and other Navy officials to determine and generate direction and guidance. While no official or contractual information has been released related to AMEWAS employees, we can offer this information:
- Employees may continue their normal work routine, unless they have been determined – by medical officials – to be affected by the virus.
- No employee is authorized to deny anyone the ability to work because of suspicions that the employee may have contracted the virus.
- If anyone feels the need to self-quarantine, they may do so – taking accrued leave under existing leave policies.
- Anyone who believes they may have been exposed to the virus should self-quarantine and contact their Health Care Provider immediately.
- All employees should practice sound prevention routines and avoid unnecessary contact which, may increase their chance of contracting the virus.
- Official Travel is currently being reviewed. The government has informed us that formal direction on official travel (CONUS and OCONUS) will be coming out soon.
- Personal Travel should also be reviewed, especially those who are anticipating leaving the country or visiting areas where chances of being exposed are higher.
- The government may (we do not know for sure) place restrictions on personnel returning to work after returning from foreign travel.
I know there are more questions than answers at this point — so as we gain more information and guidance from NAVAIR, we will update everyone as soon as practical. If you have questions, please feel free to contact anyone in your chain-of-command.
Regards,