Virginia Is the First State to Implement COVID-19 Safety Standard
Virginia has become the first state to issue a COVID-19 workplace standard with the caveat that the standard may be withdrawn when Virginia is no longer in a state of emergency due to the virus.
To execute the new regulations, the standard classifies job hazards into four categories based on employee exposure levels. These include very high, high, medium and lower. Those in the lower risk category are the only segment not required to provide employee training on COVID-19. The state’s training requirements specify that employees in the medium to high risk category must be trained to recognize the hazards of the SARS-CoV-2 virus and signs and symptoms of COVID-19 disease as well as educated on the procedures to be followed to minimize exposure.
In response to the passage of the permanent standards, Virginia AFL-CIO President Doris Crouse-Mays had this to say: “We are proud of Virginia’s bold leadership from the Virginia Health and Safety Board to the Governor’s Office, and to all the advocacy groups on protecting workers during the pandemic, but now, more importantly, protecting them once we triumph over COVID-19. These, now permanent standards, are what will continue to reduce the spread of COVID-19 by addressing workplace exposures, and honoring the work being done by workers and the risks that they have taken during this pandemic to bring some normalcy to our livelihoods in the Commonwealth.”
