FNB EMPLOYEE COVID-19 POSITIVE

MBABANE - The First National Bank (FNB) has confirmed that one of their own has tested positive for COVID-19.

In a press statement released yesterday, the bank stated that the employee was attached to one of its technical areas in Matsapha, which it explained was non-customer facing.  According to the bank, this is the first known case at the bank and the affected employee was part of the national list communicated by the Ministry Health on April 25, 2020.

“The confirmed case was a contact of a previously confirmed case, who is a non-employee, and had only joined the bank as a short-term contractor at the beginning of April 2020,” reads part of the statement which was issued by Head of Human Capital Lobesutfu Nkambule.
Worth noting is that last week, social media was abuzz after a statement to the effect that one of the bank’s employees had tested positive.

Closed

It was alleged that the Matsapha branch had closed operations after the female employee had tested positive.  The employee was linked to Member of Parliament, Macford Sibandze, who had been registered as the first legislator to have tested positive for the coronavirus. Following the social media reports, the bank came out to state that it was not aware of any of its employees who had tested positive and further clarified that the aforementioned branch had not been closed.

In the statement issued yesterday, the bank said after being notified that the staff member was a contact of a confirmed case, it took all the precautionary measures as guided by the Ministry of Health.

“These included isolation of the individual while awaiting results. The bank has maintained contact with the staff member and wishes her a speedy recovery. Her family also remains in our thoughts as they recover,” the bank said. The financial institution said it had also undertaken further precautionary measures to ensure the safety of its staff and these included deep cleaning and fumigation of the affected areas which it said was completed yesterday. The testing of all staff members within the affected area is expected to be done today.

Affected

The bank will also ensure that staff members who have been in immediate contact with the affected employee self-isolate after going through testing and only return to work after receiving medical clearance. The bank said it would conduct a further decongestion of affected areas as a means of increasing the already defined social distancing requirements.

“Monitoring of social distancing requirements will continue in our premises alongside frequent hygiene and cleaning protocols,” it was stated.
Another measure stated by the bank is the continuation of the work-from-home (WFH) programme which it started in March 2020.
“FNB has achieved a 40 per cent WFH capability and this will likely be maintained for the next several months and beyond. As cases emerge nationally, we shall continue to promptly deal with those that directly impact the bank.

“The collaboration and support from health officials, our national health workers and the State is sincerely appreciated. Every effort shall continue to be made to protect our staff and customers,” the bank emphasised. Last Thursday, Nedbank Swaziland revealed that two of its staff members had been confirmed to be positive for the virus.

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