0820_AUG Comstock's Magazine 0820 August | Page 16

BY THE BOOK
Back to Business — Not as Usual
Four strategies to help employers avoid litigation as California reopens
BY Jennifer Duggan
SHUTTERSTOCK ILLUSTRATION
Managing litigation risk in the
COVID-19 era is a key issue that
concerns California employers
for good reason. Companies can expect
to see COVID-19-related employment
lawsuits from nearly any corner, including
wage and hour issues and disability
discrimination.
California’s Executive Order N-62-20
states that workers who contract
COVID-19 are presumed to have a
workplace injury covered by workers’
compensation, and the employer has the
burden to show otherwise. Pursuant to
the Occupational Safety and Health Act,
employers must maintain a workplace
free from serious hazards. If employers
knowingly expose employees to COVID-19
hazards, they are at risk for infected employees,
as well as litigation. Here are four
strategies the savvy employer can use to
manage risk.
Have a strategic plan
• Prepare and train employees on a
COVID-19 prevention plan that
includes a risk assessment of all work
areas and a designated person to
implement that plan at each location.
• Develop an exposure-response plan
that addresses isolation, containment
and contact tracing procedures; stay-athome
requirements; and staff communications
in the event of an exposure.
• Provide personal protective equipment
such as masks, gloves, face
shields and hand sanitizer.
• Maintain physical distancing to the
maximum extent possible, facilitate
use of face coverings, implement
frequent handwashing, and conduct
regular cleaning and disinfection.
• For physical distancing measures within
the workplace, consider staggered
shifts and breaks, rotate weeks in the
workplace and working remotely, move
workstations, implement one-way traffic
patterns.
• Consider welcoming back a small
group of employees to test procedures.
• Restrict business travel. Start with
16 comstocksmag.com | August 2020