On January 6, 2022, the California Division of Occupational Health and Safety (Cal/OSHA) announced that it would follow the revised guidelines issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for quarantine and isolation (“exclusion periods”) following a positive COVID-19 test or “Close Contact”^[1] with a confirmed COVID-19 case. The new rules—reducing most exclusion periods to five days—are reflected in revised Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) relating to the Cal/OSHA Emergency Temporary Standards (ETS) for the prevention of COVID-19. We previously wrote about the revised Cal/OSHA ETS, which takes effect on January 14, 2022, here.^[2]

Cal/OSHA’s announcement cleared up an ambiguity as to whether these shorter CDC exclusion periods, which had been adopted by the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) on December 27, 2021, in its Guidance for Local Health Jurisdictions on Isolation and Quarantine of the General Public (“CDPH Guidance”), applied to California workplaces.

These new rules replace the exclusion periods set forth in the current Cal/OSHA ETS, effective immediately.^[3] They track the CDC and CDPH guidelines, with exceptions as noted below.

Employers should also be aware that the revised Cal/OSHA ETS, which takes effect on January 14, 2022, defines “COVID-19 test” to exclude a test that is both self-administered and self-read. That means an at-home rapid test kit cannot be used to shorten an employee’s isolation or quarantine period from five...

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