Table 2 Child care staff’s recommendation on preventive measures to minimize COVID-19 transmission in the workplace

Structural conditions of child care

▪ Increase of number of child care staff in kindergartens (e.g. increased staff-children ratio)

▪ Reduction of the duration of child care (e.g. reduction of hours) during the pandemic

▪ Reduction of group sizes (children) during the pandemic

▪ Paid absence of high-risk group

Interaction with parents

▪ Provision of multilingual and easily comprehensible information material

▪ Maintenance of the restriction on entering the facility

▪ Increased control of private behavior of parents as well as the children (reduction of private meetings, which make separated group settings superfluous)

▪ Review the need for child care if parents have the possibility to stay at home

Implementation of preventive measures

▪ Provide sufficient protective equipment promptly

▪ Highlight the sense of purpose of individual protective measures

▪ Reduction of individual decision-making in the implementation of protective measures

▪ Better coordination of time scheduling for the implementation of measures

▪ Participatory involvement of representatives of care institutions in the development of protective measures

▪ Consideration of the spatial conditions of the facilities when planning mitigating measures

▪ Targeted control of the facilities with regard to compliance with novel hygiene standards and preventive measures

Requested support at the political level

▪ Strengthening the public perception and appreciation of the shift in behavior

▪ Transparent provision of information about the possible occurrence of infections in the facilities

▪ Introduction of compulsory testing for personnel and children in the facilities (during working hours)