With 2024 coming to a close, here is a roundup of Cal/OSHA updates from the recent Standard Board meetings and Cal/OSHA’s triannual advisory committee meeting:...more
On December 18, 2024, Governor Newsom proclaimed a State of Emergency to streamline and expedite the state’s response to Avian influenza A (H5N1), commonly known as “Bird Flu.” This may give many employers flashbacks to the...more
On January 9, 2024, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) updated its COVID-19 isolation recommendations to move away from 5 days of isolation and instead focus on clinical symptoms to determine when to end...more
Last week, the Cal/OSHA Standards Board approved an emergency temporary standard regarding respirable crystalline silica (RCS). The standard will take effect December 29, 2023....more
The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) has updated its definition of an “outbreak.” As previously discussed in our January 25, 2023 blog post, the Cal/OSHA COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standards (ETS) were...more
By now, California employers are quite familiar with the following situation: the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) makes a change to COVID-19 guidance and your workplace obligations are affected under Cal/OSHA’s...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: On June 20, 2023, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) updated its guidance to local health departments on the definition of a COVID-19 outbreak. The new definition changes the timeframe for...more
While the California COVID-19 State of Emergency was lifted several months ago, one holdover of the COVID-19 pandemic is the Cal/OSHA COVID-19 Prevention Non-Emergency Regulations (NER), which remain in effect until February...more
On March 3, 2023, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) announced changes to its COVID-19 guidelines. A few days later, the County of Los Angeles announced it will align a few of its guidelines with the CDPH....more
The California Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board’s COVID-19 Prevention Non-Emergency Regulation is now in place. It took effect on February 3, 2023, following approval by the state’s Office of Administrative Law....more
As COVID-19 continues to linger in California, it remains an ongoing concern for state lawmakers. In response to this ongoing threat, California continues to provide updated regulations as it pertains to COVID in the...more
California employers take note: the non-emergency version of the Cal/OSHA COVID-19 Prevention regulations are now in effect. At the end of 2022, the Cal/OSHA Standards Board voted to adopt the COVID-19 Prevention...more
Although most experts say that COVID-19 is here to stay, California’s employment-related emergency regulations in response to the COVID-19 pandemic are winding down. As most employers are aware, on December 31, 2022,...more
As we near the end of the Cal/OSHA COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS), Cal/OSHA has promised a new COVID-19 workplace regulation in its place. On December 15, the agency’s Standards Board will be voting to approve a...more
Fans of the 1984 fantasy film The NeverEnding Story might remember the famous line, “Every real story is a never-ending story.” For California employers that have been grappling with COVID-19 for the better part of the last...more
This month’s change in CDC guidance on Covid-19 exposures and cases continues to sow confusion amongst CA employers. While the CDC does not require testing for Covid-19 exposures or for positive cases to end isolation,...more
The current Cal/OSHA COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) expires at the end of 2022. But Cal/OSHA is not done with COVID-19 regulations. There is a Non-Emergency Regulation in process. The Standards Board recently...more
In June 2022, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) issued an order revising the definition of “close contact.” Under the CDPH order, close contact was defined as “someone sharing the same indoor airspace (e.g....more
In early June 2022, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) issued an order revising the definition of “close contact.” Under the CDPH order, close contact was defined as “someone sharing the same indoor airspace...more
California public health officials recently revised the definitions of “close contact” and “infectious period” that appear in the state’s pandemic-related rules – and the new broader standards might catch some employers by...more
On June 17, 2022, Governor Newsom issued an executive order terminating certain provisions of prior executive orders related to Cal/OSHA’s COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standards (ETS). Some of the terminated orders were no...more
On June 8, 2022, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) issued an Order (June 8th Order) defining “Close Contact” and “Infectious Period” for purposes of the CDPH’s Isolation and Quarantine Guidance issued on April...more
As promised, after the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health’s (Cal/OSHA) COVID-19 Prevention Emergency Temporary Standards (ETS) went into effect on May 6, 2022, Cal/OSHA issued updated frequently asked...more
On May 7, 2022 (Yes, that was a Saturday), CalOSHA issued a Fact Sheet and updated Frequently Asked Questions (“FAQs”) to align with, and explain, its revised Emergency Temporary Standards (“ETS”) for preventing and...more
At the end of April, the Cal/OSHA Standards Board voted to approve the Third Readoption of the Cal/OSHA COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS). The revised version of the ETS took effect on May 6, 2022....more