Pennsylvania Guidance for All Businesses Issued May 4, 2020
Governor Wolf issued a Guidance on May 4, 2020, which was updated on May 6, 2020. The Guidance applies to every business in Pennsylvania no matter what phase (Red, Yellow or Green).
REMOTE WORK
The Guidance begins by explicitly instructing that those businesses who are operating remotely, must continue to operate remotely.
First and foremost, businesses that have been operating remotely through individual telework of their employees must continue to telework to prevent the spreading of COVID-19 until the stay-at-home and business closure orders are fully lifted.
So, if your business has been conducting business remotely, you must continue to do so until the Orders are fully lifted.
PHASES DEFINED
RED PHASE
The only businesses in the Red Phase that can conduct in-person operations are those (1) listed in the Governor’s List of Life Sustaining Businesses, (2) who received exemptions to conduct in-person business, and (3) those in the car sales business, the construction industry and the real estate industry. All other businesses must abide by the March 19, 2020 Business Closure Order.
YELLOW PHASE
The Governor will designate which counties and industries are in the Yellow Phase. The Governor issued an Order on May 7, 2020, that designated certain counties as in the Yellow Phase. (See Blog Post on this Order.) Businesses in the Yellow Phase must continue to operate remotely. To the extent these businesses cannot operate remotely, then they can conduct business in-person so long as they adhere to the requirements of the Guidance.
GREEN PHASE
The Green phase means that all businesses, “are authorized to conduce unrestricted in-person operations so long as the businesses follow the CDC and Department of Health guidelines.”
GUIDANCE
The Guidance applies to businesses that must conduct in-person operations and activities because their employees cannot telework. Again, companies who have been working remotely must maintain the remote work set-up despite being moved from the Red Phase to the Yellow Phase. (NOTE: This summary focuses on the requirements placed on private businesses- not government entities.) The Requirements of conducting in-person business in the yellow phase are as follows:
Adhere to the Pennsylvania April 15, 2020 Order regarding operating business. A summary of this Order is found in my previous blog.
Take each employee’s temperature before they enter the business. Employees with a temperature of 100.4 degrees or higher must be sent home.
Make employees and customers aware of the Guidance. Businesses are required to publicly acknowledge their responsibility to conduct their operations to ensure the health and safety of their employees. Companies should consult with counsel regarding ways to fulfill this requirement.
Print and post the required notice on their premises. The Guidance requires employers to sign the Notice. The Notice must be signed by a corporate officer, site manager, site foreperson, or equivalent.
Pandemic Safety Officer: The Notice discussed above, also provides a space for the company to identify the Pandemic Safety Officer. This is the individual who is in charge of the COVID-19 safety procedures for the business.
Businesses who are conducting in-person business in the Yellow Phase or Red Phase must abide by this Guidance. It is strongly suggested that companies draft and circulate COVID Policies so that they are in accordance with the Guidance.