Memorandum
Date: July 18, 2023
To: The Honorable Jessica Pyska, Chair, Lake County Board of Supervisors
From: Lloyd Guintivano, County Counsel
Prepared by: Rick Ensley, Risk Analyst - County Counsel/ Risk Division
Subject: Approve Amendments to the County of Lake COVID-19 Public Health
Emergency Worksite Protocol and Amendments to Chapter 14 of the County
of Lake Policies and Procedures
Executive Summary:
Staff submits for your Board's consideration updates to the COVID-19 Emergency Worksite Protocol to address recent updates in COVID-19 regulations from the California Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board.
On December 15, 2022, the Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board (Board) voted to adopt non-emergency COVID-19 prevention regulations (Non-Emergency Regulations). Approved by the Office of Administrative Law (OAL), these regulations took effect on February 3rd, 2023, and will remain in effect for two years after the effective date, except for the recordkeeping requirements remaining in effect for three years.
Changes from the Emergency Temporary Standards (ETS) model:
* No exclusion pay. Employers are no longer required to pay employees while they are excluded from the workplace. Instead, upon excluding an employee, employers must provide employees with information regarding COVID-19 related benefits that they may be entitled to under federal, state, or local laws; the employer's own leave policies; or other available leave.
* No standalone COVID-19 Prevention Plan. Employers are no longer required to maintain a standalone COVID-19 Prevention Plan. Now, employers must address COVID-19 as a workplace hazard under their Injury and Illness Prevention Program or in a separate document and include procedures to prevent COVID-19 in the workplace.
When determining measures to prevent COVID-19 transmission and to identify and correct COVID-19 hazards, employers must:
* Consider all persons to be potentially infectious;
* Review...
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