Permanent COVID-19 workplace rules have officially gone into effect Jan. 28 in Virginia, following Governor Ralph Northam’s approval of the standard.
The standard – which was adopted Jan. 13 by the state’s Department of Labor and Industry’s Safety and Health Codes Board – mandates appropriate PPE, sanitation, social distancing, infectious disease preparedness and response plans, record keeping, training, and hazard communications for workplaces in Virginia.
Virginia was the first state to adopt a temporary standard addressing COVID-19 in the workplace, and has now become the first state with a permanent standard, which requires:
- all public-facing employees to wear masks
- ready access to hand sanitizer
- regular cleaning of common work spaces
- training employees on COVID-19 safety, and
- developing infectious disease and preparedness response plans.
The permanent regulations include guidelines for returning to work and communicating about employees who test positive and potential exposures, according to a news release from Governor Northam’s office.
The Virginia Department of Labor and Industry will enforce the permanent standard.
