Member Article

Virginia is now the first state in the nation to enact mandatory occupational safety standards regarding COVID-19. The Virginia Department of Labor and Industry’s health and safety board voted 9-2 on July 15 to adopt an “Emergency Temporary Standard” which requires employers to implement measures to protect employees from COVID-19. Virginia employers would face maximum civil penalties ranging from $13,494 per violation to $134,937 per violation of the Emergency Temporary Standard which could take effect as soon as July 27, 2020.

As Virginia employers evaluate the multitude of requirements included in the Emergency Temporary Standard, it is critical to begin assessing current workplace policies in preparation for implementation of more stringent health and safety protocols relative to COVID-19.

The Emergency Temporary Standard was drafted by the Department at the direction of Governor Ralph Northam, partially in response to a perceived lack of enforcement of federal workplace safety standards by the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

Exposure Risk Level

To implement the infection control requirements enacted by the Emergency Temporary Standard, employers will be required to classify the risk in their workplaces of contracting and spreading COVID-19 (the “Exposure Risk Level”). The directive specifies four Exposure Risk levels for assessment: “Very High;” “High;” “Medium” and “Low.” A workplace may qualify under more than one risk category, based on the nature of workplace hazards and the job tasks performed. The Exposure Risk Level(s) applicable to an employer’s workplace determine the necessary safety standards that must be implemented to “control, prevent, and mitigate the spread of COVID-19 to and among employees and employers.”

Factors used to determine Exposure Risk Level include:

• Job tasks being undertaken;
• Work environment (e.g., indoors or outdoors);
• The known or suspected presence of COVID-19 or a person with COVID-19 in the workplace;
• The number of employees and/or other persons in relation to the work area;
• The working distance between employees; and
• The duration and frequency of employee exposure through contact within six feet of other employees and persons, including shift work exceeding eight hours per day.
  
  

Very High Exposure Risk Levels apply to those job tasks or places of employment with high potential for employee exposure of known or suspected sources of COVID-19, including but not limited to specific medical, postmortem or laboratory procedures.

High Exposure Risk Levels apply to those job tasks or places of employment with high potential for COVID-19 exposure within six feet of known or suspected sources of COVID-19 which includes physical and mental healthcare workers, medical transport services, first responders and mortuary services.

Medium Exposure Risk Levels apply to those job tasks or places of employment that require more than minimal occupational contact inside of six feet with other employees, other persons or members of the general public who may be infected with COVID-19 but are not known to be carriers. Medium risk employers may include, but are not limited to, poultry, meat and seafood processing, agricultural labor, transportation services, educational settings, bars and restaurants, personal care businesses, gyms, exercise facilities and spas, and venues for sports, entertainment and other forms of mass gathering.

Click here to read more.