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- updated 5/9/2022
Employers are responsible for ensuring a safe and healthy workplace for their workers and to protect them from known hazards, including COVID-19. Cal/OSHA adopted COVID-19 Prevention Emergency Temporary Standards (ETS) on November 30, 2020 outlining the steps employers must take in the workplace to protect workers. Some of the key elements of the ETS include:
Written Plan
Employers must develop a written COVID-19 Prevention Program or ensure its elements are included in an existing Injury and Illness Prevention Program (IIPP). Download Cal/OSHA’s Model COVID-19 Prevention Plan.
Hazard Identification
Employers must identify, evaluate, and correct workplace hazards. For more information on how to assess hazards, click here.
Face Coverings and Other Controls
Employers must implement engineering controls, administrative controls, and provide personal protective equipment (PPE) to protect workers from COVID-19. Click here for more information on PPE.
Communication
Employers must communicate to workers about their COVID-19 prevention procedures. For employer discussion guide resources, visit our COVID-19 training page.
Training
Employers must train workers about COVID-19 spread and symptoms, workplace policies, COVID-19-related benefits, and how to access vaccines and testing. Training must also include the company’s policy for distributing respirators upon request and how to properly wear a respirator. For training resources, visit our COVID-19 training page.
Addressing COVID-19 Cases
Employers shall have an effective procedure to investigate and respond to COVID-19 cases in the workplace, including identifying and recording COVID-19 cases and notifying workers within one business day if they may have been exposed to COVID-19.
Exclusion Pay and Benefits
Workers who have been excluded from work due to a workplace exposure to COVID-19 are eligible for exclusion pay. For more information on workplace benefits, visit our Benefits and Leave page.