Cal/OSHA Once Again Updates COVID Guidelines

But check local ordinances!

When new Cal/OSHA COVID guidelines took effect on May 6, green industry employers no longer had to take vaccination status into account when setting policies or quarantine asymptomatic exposed employees. They will, however, have to carefully check local ordinances which may be more restrictive than the just-relaxed state guidelines.

As reported by our friends at the California Employers Association — the voice of CLCA’s popular HR Hotline member benefit — Cal/OSHA’s Standards Board on April 21 approved a third re-adoption of their COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard.

The standard provides COVID-related rules for the workplace and will remain in effect until December 31, 2022.

The revised standard also:

• • Calls for employers to heed isolation and quarantine guidelines issued by the California Department of Public Health. READ>
  • Eases up on testing criteria for employees returning to work. Employee can self-administer and self-read their COVID-19 test, with conditions.
  • Eases restrictions on the types of acceptable COVID-19 tests an employer is required to offer (i.e., after close contact exposures, during outbreaks and for symptomatic employees).

Employers should note that the rest of the standards’ rules remain in effect, such as exclusion pay requirements, notification/reporting and the obligation to maintain a written COVID-19 Prevention Program.