Cal/OSHA readopted the COVID-19 Prevention Emergency Temporary Standards (ETS) on December 16, 2021. While a large portion of the existing ETS remains in place, there were a few changes made in this newly adopted ETS. The new ETS approved on December 16 will take effect on January 14, 2022. This Friday’s Five provides a summary of some of key revisions employers must be aware of:
1. Testing requirements are modified.
The revised ETS provide that an acceptable COVID-19 test cannot be self-administered and self-read. The employer or an authorized telehealth proctor must observe a self-administered test for it to qualify as a COVID-19 test under the ETS.
The revised ETS obligates employers to provide testing to employees if they have had a close COVID-19 contact, even if they are fully vaccinated. This is a change from the prior version of the ETS that did not require employer to provide testing to employees who were fully vaccinated.
The revised ETS also requires employers to provide testing at no costs to all employees during an outbreak, even those who were fully vaccinated. The prior version of the ETS did not require employers to provide testing to fully vaccinated employees who did not have symptoms during an outbreak.
2. Face covering definition has been updated (in addition to California’s updated mask mandate in place from December 15, 2021 through January 15, 2022).
The definition for face covering was updated to include a requirement that the face covering is...
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