Executive Order 20-40, issued by Gov. Tim Walz on April 23, 2020, requires each business in operation during the peacetime emergency to establish a “COVID-19 Preparedness Plan.”
The Preparedness Plan must meet the criteria set forth by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) guidelines for COVID-19 and federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standards related to worker exposure to COVID-19.
The Preparedness Plan must contain certain minimum requirements, including:
- infection prevention measures;
- prompt identification and isolation of sick persons;
- engineering and administrative controls for social distancing;
- housekeeping, including cleaning, disinfecting and decontamination;
- communications and training for managers and workers necessary to implement the plan; and
- management and supervision necessary to ensure effective ongoing implementation of the plan.
Below is a template Preparedness Plan by the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) that can also be found here:
https://mn.gov/deed/newscenter/covid/safework/business/
**Inserted throughout are links to resources for implementing the plan**
COVID-19 Preparedness Plan for [Company name]
[Company name] is committed to providing a safe and healthy workplace for all our workers. To ensure that, we have developed the following Preparedness Plan in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Managers and workers are all responsible for implementing this plan. Our goal is to mitigate the potential for transmission of COVID-19 in our workplaces, and that requires full cooperation among workers and management. Only through this cooperative effort can we establish and maintain the safety and health of our workers and workplaces.
Management and workers are responsible for implementing and complying with all aspects of this Preparedness Plan. [Company name] managers and supervisors have our full support in enforcing the provisions of this policy.
Our workers are our most important assets. We are serious about safety and health and keeping our workers working at [company name]. Worker involvement is essential in developing and implementing a successful COVID-19 Preparedness Plan. We have involved our workers in this process by [Describe how worker concerns have been addressed, how worker suggestions and feedback have been requested, and how those have been integrated into developing the plan]. Our Preparedness Plan follows Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Minnesota Department of Health (MDH) guidelines and federal OSHA standards related to COVID-19 and addresses:
- hygiene and respiratory etiquette;
- engineering and administrative controls for social distancing;
- housekeeping – cleaning, disinfecting and decontamination;
- prompt identification and isolation of sick persons;
- communications and training that will be provided to managers and workers; and
- management and supervision necessary to ensure effective implementation of the plan.
Screening and policies for employees exhibiting signs and symptoms of COVID-19
Workers have been informed of and encouraged to self-monitor for signs and symptoms of COVID-19. The following policies and procedures are being implemented to assess workers’ health status prior to entering the workplace and for workers to report when they are sick or experiencing symptoms. [Describe how you will address topics such as health screening, how workers will communicate with the business if they are sick or experiencing symptoms while at home, how workers report they are sick or experiencing symptoms while at work and how workers will be isolated in the workplace until they can be sent home.]
[Company name] has implemented leave policies that promote workers staying at home when they are sick, when household members are sick, or when required by a health care provider to isolate or quarantine themselves or a member of their household. [Describe your sick leave, the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and other policies addressing these situations.] Accommodations for workers with underlying medical conditions or who have household members with underlying health conditions have been implemented. [Describe policy.]
[Company name] has also implemented a policy for informing workers if they have been exposed to a person with COVID-19 at their workplace and requiring them to quarantine for the required amount of time. [Describe policy.]
In addition, a policy has been implemented to protect the privacy of workers’ health status and health information. [Describe policy.]
www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-
www.health.state.mn.us/
Handwashing
Basic infection prevention measures are being implemented at our workplaces at all times. Workers are instructed to wash their hands for at least 20 seconds with soap and water frequently throughout the day, but especially at the beginning and end of their shift, prior to any mealtimes and after using the toilet. All visitors to the facility will be required to wash their hands prior to or immediately upon entering the facility. Some workplaces may have hand-sanitizer dispensers (that use sanitizers of greater than 60% alcohol) that can be used for hand hygiene in place of soap and water, as long as hands are not visibly soiled.
[Describe how necessary handwashing and/or sanitizer facilities will be provided, supplied and maintained, and that workers will be allowed to perform handwashing to meet this precaution.]
Respiratory etiquette: Cover your cough or sneeze
Workers and visitors are being instructed to cover their mouth and nose with their sleeve or a tissue when coughing or sneezing and to avoid touching their face, in particular their mouth, nose and eyes, with their hands. They should dispose of tissues in the trash and wash or sanitize their hands immediately afterward. Respiratory etiquette will be demonstrated on posters and supported by making tissues and trash receptacles available to all workers and visitors. [Describe how these instructions and reminders will be communicated.]
www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-
www.health.state.mn.us/
www.cdc.gov/healthywater/
Social distancing
Social distancing is being implemented in the workplace through the following engineering and administrative controls: [Describe what your company is doing to: use telework, flexible work hours, staggered shifts and additional shifts to reduce the number of employees in the workplace at one time; maintain six feet of distance between workers; provide signage or instructions for employees and visitors; regulate riding in or sharing of vehicles; support communications plans to address employee concerns; etc. Describe how you will provide recommended protective supplies, such as masks, gloves, disinfectant, shields, etc. Also describe any physical workplace changes, such as increased distance between workstations or between workers on production lines, use of barriers when spacing cannot be increased, etc.] Workers and visitors are prohibited from gathering in groups and confined areas, including elevators, and from using other workers’ personal protective equipment, phones, computer equipment, desks, cubicles, workstations, offices or other personal work tools and equipment.
www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-
www.health.state.mn.us/
Housekeeping
Regular housekeeping practices are being implemented, including routine cleaning and disinfecting of work surfaces, equipment, tools and machinery, and areas in the work environment, including restrooms, break rooms, lunch rooms and meeting rooms. Frequent cleaning and disinfecting will be conducted in high-touch areas, such as phones, keyboards, touch screens, controls, door handles, elevator panels, railings, copy machines, etc. [Describe your cleaning schedule, who will be conducting the cleaning, what products you will be using to clean the workplace and how you will disinfect the workplace if a worker is diagnosed with COVID-19.]
www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-
www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-
www.epa.gov/pesticide-
www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-
Communications and training
This Preparedness Plan was communicated [explain how] to all workers [date] and necessary training was provided. Additional communication and training will be ongoing [explain how] and provided to all workers who did not receive the initial training. Managers and supervisors are to monitor how effective the program has been implemented by [explain how]. Management and workers are to work through this new program together and update the training as necessary. This Preparedness Plan has been certified by [Company name] management and was posted throughout the workplace [date]. It will be updated as necessary.
www.health.state.mn.us/
www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-
www.osha.gov/Publications/
Certified by:
[Signature]
[Title of management official]
**ADDITIONAL RESOURCES**
www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-