New Emergency COVID-19 Rules for Virginia Employers

Virginia is the first state to enact specific COVID-19 workplace mandates for employers.  Violation of these emergency mandates means hefty fines.

Emergency safety mandates include:

• Anti-Retaliation
  • No retaliation against employees who wear PPE or voice a reasonable concern about infection control.

• COVID-19 Return to Work Policy
  • Employers must have a return to work policy addressing how to handle employees that test positive for COVID-19.

• 24-hour Notification
  • Notification within 24 hours if an employee tests positive for COVID-19.

• 10 Day Waiting Period (Or Two Negative Tests)
  • Employees with COVID (or who are suspected to have it) cannot return to work for 10 days or until after 2 negative tests.

• Masks and Social Distancing
  • For customer-facing roles, masks and social distancing are mandatory (Virginia also has a state mandate for masks separate from these mandates).
  • If social distancing is not possible, employers must provide frequent access to sanitation measures.

• Common Areas – Close or Control Access
  • Employers must close or control access to common areas to prevent exposure.

• Sanitation Requirements
  • Common spaces must be disinfected after each shift with EPA approved chemicals.
  • Regular cleaning of high-contact surfaces.

• Employer Responsibility Shifts by Risk Category (very high, high, medium, or low)
  • Employer duties differ depending on whether employee’s COVID-19 risk level is “very high,” “high,” “medium,” or “low,” based on the employee’s job duties.

Sign up for the Lipp Law Firm newsletter to stay connected on updates. See our firm’s recent update on the Virginia emergency regulations here.  The regulations were made effective on July 27, 2020.

Contact Lipp Law to get a Return to Work Policy in place: (703) 896-7704