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NY Summary of Reopening Guidelines May 21, 2020

As we continue to move in a positive direction with reopening the state, we wanted to share with you several important reminders in this ever-changing time.

NYS has posted reopening guidelines, which can be found here.

  • These guidelines pertain to both essential and non-essential business and all businesses must have a re-opening plan.
  • You may utilize the NYS_BusinessReopeningSafetyPlanTemplate to develop your plan. This checklist does not have to be provided to NY State but must be completed and retained. Businesses may be asked for this document in the case of an audit or inspection.
  • We highly recommend you use this plan to develop your business’s Health and Safety Plan and distribute it to all employees. You may want to obtain a signature from employees and retain a copy of the signed policy in your files.
  • A component of the reopening guidelines are daily temperature checks or screening questionnaires for employees and some visitors. Employers must decide how they intend to satisfy this requirement while ensuring employee information is kept confidential. We have included 2 samples of an employee screening at the bottom of this article.
  • Reopening will happen in phases across industries. Currently we are learning that the Phase 2 industries in the WNY region may be delayed beyond the standard two weeks due to a recent increase in the 3-day average of new hospitalizations.
  • Each industry located within a phase has both a summary and detailed guidelines that should be reviewed for compliance. These guidelines include the mandatory and recommended protocols concerning physical distancing, protective equipment, cleaning and hygiene, communication, and screening.
  • In addition to reviewing the guidelines, each business must affirm that they have read and understood their obligation to operate under the guidance. The guidelines and link to the affirmation are found at the New York Forward Website, here: https://forward.ny.gov/.

If you are already an ESC client, please contact your HR Business Partner if you have any questions on moving forward with reopening your business or returning employees to your physical workplace. Policies, screening questionnaires, and Health and Safety plan templates are all available to be customized for your operations.

COVID-19 Employee Health-Screening Questionnaire

COVID-19 Employee Health-Screening Form-Daily

Important Reminder:  The information in this article is current only as of the date of the posting. The situation is rapidly evolving.  Please check our website frequently for the latest guidance.