California Governor Gavin Newsom recently signed into law AB 685, which is aimed at protecting employees from exposure to COVID-19 in the workplace through employer notice, reporting and other accountability measures. Below are three main mandates of the new law.

Written Notice of Possible Exposure to Employees

First, if an employer has notice that a qualifying individual-i.e., someone who has a laboratory-confirmed case of COVID-19, who has a positive COVID-19 diagnosis from a licensed health care provider, who is subject to a COVID-19-related order to isolate by a public health official, or who died due to COVID-19-was present in the workplace, the employer must, within one business day of the notice, provide written notice of possible exposure to all employees who were onsite at the same site as the qualifying individual within the infectious period (i.e., the time that an individual with COVID-19 is infectious, as defined by the California Department of Public Health). This employee notice must include the following:

  • That the employees may have been exposed to COVID-19 at the worksite
  • Information about COVID-19-related benefits and options for which they may be eligible under applicable law (local, state and federal), including workers' compensation, COVID-19-related leave and sick leave, as well as employee anti-retaliation and anti-discrimination protections
  • The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention-compliant disinfection and safety plan that the employer plans to implement and complete

Employee representatives (e.g., unions) and employers of subcontracted employees are also entitled to the above notice. Employers are required to keep records relating to any notices they provide to employees for at least three years.

Notification to Local Public Health Agencies

Second, if an employer has a COVID-19 outbreak (currently defined by the California Department of Public Health as three or more laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19 among employees who live in different households within a two-week period) at a worksite, it must (a) notify the local public health agency within 48 hours of the outbreak, including the number, names, occupations and worksites of any qualifying individuals and the business address and North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) industry codes of the worksites where the qualifying individuals work and (b) continue to notify the local health department of subsequent laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19 at the worksite.

Imminent Hazard Notice at the Workplace

Third, AB 685 empowers the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health to prohibit the entry into or operation of a workplace that exposes employees to the risk of infection with COVID-19-to the extent it constitutes an "imminent hazard" to employees-and to require the posting of a related notice at the workplace.

Given this new law, employers should ensure that they have a solid COVID-19 exposure response plan in place and are adequately prepared to meet the quick employee and government agency notice requirements and other steps required by AB 685.

AB 685 will be in effect from January 1, 2021, until January 1, 2023. The California Department of Industrial Relations has published FAQs to help employers navigate the new requirements.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.