Table 1:

Benefits and challenges of implementing work bubbles during the COVID-19 pandemic

Public health	Benefits It can reduce the reproduction number of the disease (Figure 1). It can increase the efficiency and effectiveness of track-and-trace systems by providing a tool for immediate removal of at-risk individuals from their employment community. It is a pre-emptive approach to employee contact tracing that reduces spread not only within a company, but also in the surrounding community by providing a tool for early contact isolation. Challenges It is difficult to enforce.
Employees	Benefits It is an additional way to protect employees against acquiring COVID-19 in the workplace. It can increase employee confidence in the safety of the workplace. Challenges It may negatively affect the work schedule. Employees may not be able to interact socially with those outside their work bubble. There may be decreased productivity.
Employers	Benefits If employment bubbles within a business are modular and redundant, specific bubbles can be shut down without disruption to the ongoing business operation as a whole. It allows employers to ensure that they are taking active preventive measures to keep their employees safe. Challenges It introduces administrative complexity in workforce scheduling. It may be difficult to ensure separation of work bubbles from one another.

Note: COVID-19 = coronavirus disease 2019.