New York State, along with many others, have mandated a stay at home order as part of their social distancing policy. As such, most businesses have to close in response to the coronavirus crisis. There are, however, 12 business sectors which are exempt from this order, and can remain open because they are considered essential. Do you know if your business is considered essential? Read on to learn more.

Is Your Business Essential in the Coronavirus Crisis?

As New York State continues to follow Governor Cuomo’s executive order and take a “pause', many businesses are unsure of what qualifies as an essential business. Fortunately there is Guidance on Essential Services on the NYS coronavirus website. There are 12 services which are considered essential during the coronavirus crisis (note this provided list is not conclusive, please visit the listed website for more information):

1. Essential Health Care Operations
   • Hospitals
   • Nursing Homes
   • Medical Supplies

2. Essential Infrastructure
   • Utilities
   • Places of accommodation
   • Telecommunications

3. Essential Manufacturing
   • Food and beverage processing
   • Pharmaceuticals
   • Farms

4. Essential Retail
   • Grocery Stores
   • Gas Stations
   • Restaurant/bars (ONLY take-out/delivery)

5. Essential Services
   • Laundromats
   • Animal Shelters
   • Trash and Recycling centers

6. News Media
7. Financial Institutions
   • Banks
   • Insurance
   • Payroll services

8. Providers of Basic Necessities to Economically Disadvantaged Populations
   • Food Banks
   • Homeless Shelters
   • Human Services Providers

9. Construction
   • Electricians, Plumbers, other skilled trades
   • Essential construction providers

10. US Government Defense
11. Essential Services Necessary to Maintain the Safety, Sanitation and Essential Operations of Residences or Other Essential Businesses
    • Law Enforcement
    • Building Cleaners
    • Fire Prevention

12. Vendors that Provide Essential Services or Products, Including Logistics and Technology Support, Child Care and Services:
    • Child care programs and services
    • Logistics
    • Technology support for online services

If the services of your business are not listed above, but you feel it is essential or it is an entity providing essential services or functions, you may request designation as an essential business.

Not Essential? Remote Work Is Your Best Option

If it turns out your business isn't considered essential (although we know your business is essential to you and your team), now is the time to reconsider telework. A remote workforce allows your team to still be productive, and support your clients while maintaining social distancing and obeying the stay at home request.

Unfortunately, working effectively from home requires more than just using a smartphone. This means taking the time to manage your business and remote workforce. There are some pieces of technology which are essential to having a good remote work experience. 

A few of them are:

• Reliable Internet
• Up-to-date software and hardware
• Powerful anti-virus and spam protection

Additional Tools for Remote Work

Those few are just the basics, ideally you would want to be able to video chat, to create and share documents using G Suite or Office 365 and have a quiet place to work. Your workspace doesn't have to be at corporate level technology, but it does need to be efficient and consistent. One way to think about supporting your team's ability to work remotely is similar to supporting them with your BYOD program and many of the same protocols are transferable. This means you don't have to recreate the wheel, there is already a road-map to follow and Directive can help.

If you're interested in learning more about providing your team with the tools to work remotely, call us at 607.433.2200 to schedule an appointment today and we will discuss your options. It's time to adapt to the new normal.