The California Department of Public Health and the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) recently released industry guidance for logistics and warehousing facilities in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. Some of the topics covered in the guidance include the following:
- “Establish a worksite specific COVID-19 prevention plan at every facility.”
- “Train and communicate with employees and employee representatives on the plan.”
- Conduct “temperature and/or symptom screenings for all workers at the beginning of their shift and any personnel entering the facility.
- “Encourage workers who are sick or exhibiting symptoms of COVID-19 to stay home.”
- Evaluate the need for protective equipment.
- Require employees to wear face coverings. “Workers should have face coverings available and wear them when at work, in offices, or in a vehicle for work-related travel with others. Face coverings must not be shared.”
- Establish hygiene, cleaning, and disinfecting protocols.
- Explore alternatives for delivery drivers to access restrooms on their routes as the regular locations may be closed.
- Provide on-the-clock time for employees to “implement cleaning practices before and after shifts.”
- Provide employees with protective equipment to use when offloading and storing delivered goods. “Employees should inspect deliveries and perform disinfection measures prior to storing goods in warehouses and facilities when deliveries appear tampered with.”
- “Consider installing portable high-efficiency air cleaners, upgrading the building’s air filters to the highest efficiency possible, and making other modifications to increase the quantity of outside air and ventilation in work and break areas.”
- Establish physical distancing guidelines (i.e., at least six feet of separation).
- Implement engineering controls (e.g., physical barriers such as Plexiglas and other partitions), administrative controls (e.g., staggered shifts and breaks), and use of personal protective equipment (e.g., face shields, masks, and gloves).
Employers in these industries may want to review the guidance for more information. In addition to the guidance, Cal/OSHA has also released a helpful checklist to assist logistics and warehousing employers in implementing their plans to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the workplace.
Ogletree Deakins will continue to monitor and report on developments with respect to the COVID-19 pandemic and will post updates in the firm’s Coronavirus (COVID-19) Resource Center as additional information becomes available. Critical information for employers is also available via the firm’s webinar programs.
