New Cal OSHA Emergency Standards

New Cal OSHA Emergency Standards

The California Occupational Health & Safety Standards Board (Cal OSHA)  has received more than 4,000 complaints regarding workplace COVID-19 non-compliance. Although citations were issued for those in violation of safety standards, limited resources combined with a lack of accessible legal alternatives make enforcement an ambitious task. 

As a result, on November 19th, 2020, Cal OSHA unanimously adopted 21 pages of emergency COVID-19 safety regulations. The Regulations apply to all employees and places of employment except:

1. Those places of employment with one employee who does not have contact with others; 
2. Employees working from home; and 
3. Employees covered by Title 8 of the California Code of Regulations, (Section 5199)

Cal OSHA’s new regulations went into effect on December 1st.  These new regulations are to increase protections for employees, namely those in the agricultural and service sectors, belonging to workplaces with COVID-19 outbreaks, as they have been disproportionately impacted by the virus.

These new standards seek to encourage workers not to risk showing up at work after being recently exposed to the coronavirus, coronavirus symptoms, or returning to work prematurely after being diagnosed with the virus.

The regulations mandate that:

• Employers inform employees of potential workplace exposure to the coronavirus within one business day
• Employers provide face masks to employees; and,
• Employers provide on-site testing during work hours in the case of a possible outbreak
• Employees isolating and following a workplace-related coronavirus outbreak must be paid for the two weeks of quarantine

These emergency standards apply to most workers in California not covered by Cal/OSHA’s Aerosol Transmissible Diseases standard. Cal/OSHA has posted FAQs and a one-page fact sheet on the regulation, as well as a model COVID-19 prevention program. Additionally, employers are invited to participate in training webinars held by Cal/OSHA’s Consultation Services branch.

For more information about COVID compliance and regulation, read about OSHA’s most-violated standards related to COVID-19.