Getting Ready to Open Again

May 21, 2020

Employers have many questions as they start to think about reopening their workplaces. Chief among them are what they can do to ensure the safety of their employees, as well as customers and other visitors. Another biggie is what liability they’re looking at if someone gets sick.

But guidance from government bodies changes from day to day, making it difficult for companies to know what they’re expected to do.

“It puts employers in a really difficult position,” said Domenique Camacho Moran, a partner at Uniondale-based Farrell Fritz who concentrates her practice on labor and employment law. “Every time they thought they had the answer, it changes.”

Generally speaking, employers are looking at social distancing, personal protective equipment, cleaning routines and ways to screen for illness, as well as policies for what to do when someone tests positive for COVID-19.

“Some of our clients are essential businesses, so they have put new processes in place already, which are becoming part of the culture,” Moran said. “Some things take time, like retrofitting space and ordering supplies. Everybody should be looking now at what they need to do so they will be prepared to have people back at work.”

To read the full article, please click here (subscription required).