On November 19, 2020, the California Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board passed the Cal/OSHA’s Emergency COVID-19 Prevention Regulation. The regulation was subsequently sent to the Office of Administrative Law (OAL) for review, and on November 30, 2020, the OAL approved the new regulation. The regulation found here became effective immediately – on November 30, 2020.

All California employers must comply with the new regulation.

The regulation outlines COVID-19 prevention, COVID-19 infections and outbreaks, and COVID-19 prevention in employer-provided housing and transportation.

Employers should immediately begin reviewing or developing their COVID-19 Prevention Plan to ensure compliance. There are several specific requirements that must be included:

• Communication of COVID-19 policies and procedures including how employers will communicate COVID-19-related hazards to their employees, how employees can get tested for COVID-19, report symptoms and/or COVID-19-positive tests, and how employees at higher risk of the virus can request an accommodation.
• Procedures for identifying COVID-19 hazards in the workplace and allowing employees to participate in that process. Employers must have a procedure for conducting health screenings, responding to positive COVID-19 cases, and complying with local health orders.
• Procedures for investigating and responding to COVID-19 cases in the workplace, including identifying the potential source of the exposure of the COVID-19-positive employee, and the employer’s contact-tracing process to identify others who may have been exposed to the virus.
• Procedures for correcting COVID-19-related hazards identified in the course of its inspection after either learning of a COVID-19 positive case or concerns raised by employees.
• Employers must conduct training for all employees on all COVID-19 related items including their CPP, benefits available in the event of an infection, their methods for preventing exposures, how the virus can be transmitted in the workplace, social distancing protocols, proper use of face coverings, where to obtain testing, and protocols in the event of exposure or when an employee tests positive.
• Employers will need to review their procedures on physical distancing in the workplace to ensure effectiveness.
• Employers have policies and procedures for enforcing face coverings/face masks.
• Employers must evaluate and consider additional PPE controls for minimizing the risk of COVID-19 infections, including use of Plexiglas barriers, procedures for cleaning and disinfecting, and how commonly used items are shared, cleaned, and disinfected.
• Employers will need strict recordkeeping and reporting guidelines for COVID-19, including the employer’s procedures for notifying the Department of Public Health about an outbreak, procedures for recording work-related COVID-19 cases on Cal/OSHA 300 logs, and procedures for reporting work-related hospitalizations or fatalities to Cal/OSHA.
• Employers must ensure that employees who are confirmed COVID-19 cases stay home from work until return-to-work requirements are met, which are consistent with current CDC guidelines.
• Employers must take extra steps to address potential outbreaks including conducting additional investigations and reporting the outbreak to the local health department. Additionally, the employers must provide COVID-19 testing if any of the three scenarios described above occur.
• If employers provide housing or transportation for their workers, they will need to comply with additional measures.
• If an employee misses work due to COVID-19, employers may be required to maintain these employees’ earnings, seniority, and other rights and benefits. In addition, employers will need to carefully review their pay practices as it relates to compensating time spent testing employees, and for employers providing transportation, time spent screening and excluding drivers and riders with COVID-19 symptoms.

This final Cal/OSHA regulation is also now enforceable so it is critical employers take steps immediately to implement their COVID-19 emergency regulations policies and procedures.