Morris Napolitano had the idea to train construction workers on how to clean up and avoid contracting a pandemic disease a decade before the novel coronavirus appeared.

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"I’ll never forget what I saw on TV: a janitor in the school has no mask or other protection, and he’s wiping down surfaces for H1N1," the chairman of the Environmental Contractors Association recalled Tuesday. That's when Napolitano, who also owns the Brooklyn-based environmental remediation contracting firm Degmore Inc., and the ECA decided to "create training" on biological hazards such as dangerous viruses, "and a standard that every contractor would be held to," complete with certification.

But the training will have to wait until June, since the New York City officials have prohibited gatherings of 50 or more people—which would include the ECA/Linders training seminar. For now, Napolitano offers advice to workers and supervisors at construction sites, some of whom may serve as skeleton crews where work has been suspended.

Workers should stay at least 6 ft away from each other. Contractors and project owners should provide soap and water and perhaps even hand sanitizers on site. Portable toilets should be cleaned regularly and a person should use toilet paper or paper towels "between you and hard objects" rather than touch things directly, Napolitano says.

He says "most of my work is asbestos," which ironically is a good thing for his crews, because "my guys are always suited up with respirators. All our men have booties, gloves, X fit suits, hoodies. We’re safe."

Another way to keep employees safe from the COVID-19 virus is by stopping work at construction sites. "I have a feeling that’s going to continue," Napolitano says, adding that already, "a couple of my jobs have been shut down."

But implementing fullwork stoppages, like what has happened in Boston其他建筑主管说，太剧烈，会在财务上损害该行业的人们，并不会为工人提供更多的健康保护。

“Given the precautions already in place, halting construction will do little to protect the health and safety of construction workers," Associated General Contractors of America CEO Stephen E. Sandherr said in a statement Tuesday. "But it will go a long way in undermining economic vitality by depriving millions of workers of the wages they will need over the coming days."

那不勒斯诺说，关于建筑行业如何保护公共卫生总是很困惑。

"The city is constantly dealing with disasters. Unfortunately, nobody ever learns," he says. For example, after Superstorm Sandy, people were desperate to hire contractors to remove mold from buildings. "Many homeowners got ripped off by out-of-town contractors saying, 'I can clean up mold'...the mold came right back" because those contractors weren't properly trained, Napolitano claims.

他说，ECA成员创建标准化培训的“我们自己”的想法已与其他建筑协会和纽约市官员所吸引，他希望他们能在船上完全加入ECA和Linders Health Institute 6月10日至11日提供课程在时代广场的喜来登。该培训将涵盖承包商的感染控制基础，并解决感染控制风险评估。