COVID-19: what is essential maintenance work?
Lift and Escalator Industry Association (LEIA) position
LEIA members are committed to working to government instructions and guidance on controlling the spread of COVID-19. Many in our industry are involved in roles on site to carry out essential work on sites critical to the COVID-19 response and to keep equipment and users safe, and in support of site work with parts and equipment. They therefore need to leave their homes to carry out this work and so fall into the category of “but only where this is absolutely necessary and cannot be done from home”.
We note that employers and employees will need to assess whether their work is absolutely necessary and have set out below our guidance on what might be considered essential work requiring people to leave home.
Lifts, escalators and moving walks, lifting platforms and stairlifts remaining in service in critical locations.
We believe that equipment which is kept in service as part of the operation of buildings or infrastructure critical to the COVID-19 response must continue to be Thoroughly Examined when these become due and to be maintained. Such work is therefore considered to be essential along with attending breakdowns and trap-ins.
