CDC Issues New Guidance for Office Safety

By: Liesel Stevens

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently issued new COVID-19 guidance for employers with workers in office buildings. The guidance identifies steps to create a safe and healthy workplace and protect employees and clients, including:

• Proper ventilation and increased circulation of outdoor air as much as possible;
• Identifying areas where employees have close contact (within 6 feet) of others;
• Installing transparent shields or other physical barriers to separate employees and visitors where social distancing is not possible;
• Replacing high-touch communal items, such as coffee pots and water coolers, with single-serve items;
• Asking employees to wear cloth face masks in all areas;
• Encouraging use of outdoor seating areas for any small group activities such as lunch, breaks, and meetings;
• Offering employees incentives to use forms of transportation that minimize close contact with others; and
• Administrative controls for responding to employees who have virus symptoms or a sick family member at home.

CDC Employer Information
for Office Buildings

Liesel Brand Stevens is a member of the firm’s Employment and Labor Law Section. Her employment practice focuses on defending employers in litigation matters and advising employers on various state and federal employment laws.