Mark D. Kruthers, Esq. > Attorney, Fennemore Dowling Aaron
California’s COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standards
ABOUT THE AUTHOR Mark Kruthers is an attorney in Fennemore Dowling Aaron’s employment law practice group. He provides advice and counseling to employers and management regarding federal and state employment laws, assists in the development and implementation of legally compliant employment policies and procedures, drafts employment related documentation (employee handbooks, employment agreements, compensation/ benefit plans, disciplinary documents, etc.), conducts employee training, and assists employers with numerous other employment related business tasks. Mark also represents employers and management in legal actions venued in both state and federal court. Mark can be reached at (559) 432-4500 or mkruthers@fennemorelaw.com
20 CENTRAL VALLEY PHYSICIANS
While it seems as if the COVID-19 pandemic is starting to slow, employers still have questions about how to deal with COVID-19 in the workplace. At the end of 2020, California enacted a set of emergency temporary standards intended to help prevent the spread of COVID-19. The temporary standards remain applicable to all employers except those that have employees covered by California’s Aerosol Transmissible Diseases regulation. Even then, for employees not identified in the employer’s Aerosol Transmissible Diseases Exposure Control Plan, the employer must comply with California’s emergency temporary standards. It is important to note that California’s COVID-19 emergency temporary standards (the “ETS”) apply to workplace exposures and are not intended to address exposures outside of the workplace. When dealing with an employee who reports an exposure outside of work or an employee who otherwise needs to quarantine but has not been in the workplace so as to potentially expose other employees, different federal/state/county regulations would apply. However, the ETS still provides employers with procedures to use to address COVID-19 exposures regardless of where they might occur. Pursuant to the ETS, employers must develop and implement a written COVID-19 Prevention Program. Cal-OSHA is charged with enforcing the ETS and will expect to see the COVID-19 Prevention Program as part of the employer’s existing Injury Illness Prevention Program (“IIPP”). Starting February 1, 2021, Cal-OSHA was authorized to impose monetary penalties on employers who fail to have a proper COVID-19 Prevention Program in place. While a large portion of the ETS is dedicated to outlining what must be included in the mandatory COVID-19 Prevention Program and describing the various training, masking, social distancing, and ventilation requirements, the portion of the ETS that employers struggle with the most is the mandatory investigation and quarantining requirements. Specifically, when an employer learns of the presence of COVID-19 in the workplace, an immediate investigation must take place. Of course, the infected individual must be excluded from the premises until he/she has recovered. However, the employer must also determine which employees were within 6 feet of Spring 2021
