95° + temperatures have hit in the Central Valley.  We are updating Heat Illness Prevention Programs to incorporate Covid-19 precautions. In this blog we are focusing on two specific areas: water and shade.

First, I’d like to address water as everyone needs to be consuming adequate fluids, especially when the weather is hot. It’s important to follow personal hygiene and sanitization practices for commonly touched surfaces.  Igloo jugs to fill single use cups will need to be monitored and sanitized appropriately.  Even the single use water bottles will need to be handled with proper personal hygiene caution. As always, make sure you are providing sufficient quantities of cooled fresh water at 1 quart per person per hour in the workplace.

Preventative recovery rest breaks is the next area to be addressed.  Shaded rest areas must be provided.  For every two hours worked employees must be provided with a preventative rest period of at least 10 minutes. Employers must take additional measures to be sure that employees can take a break in a shaded area while obeying social distancing of 6 feet.

Employees should be trained to keep 6 feet of social distance during breaks and transportation to prevent infection.

In California, Cal/OSHA will continue to enforce regulations associated with COVID-19 and hazards associated with the workplace including heat illness and other applicable hazards. Please review your Heat Illness Prevention programs with a review of your specific COVID-19 procedures. 

Please contact us if we can help you in adjusting your plans accordingly.

Essential Industries with an employee who tests positive for COVID-19

1. Isolate sick worker from other employees.
2. Inform other employees while protecting privacy under HIPAA laws.
3. Perform a contact tracing of the employee at your workplace for the previous 14 days including contractors and suppliers who may have been in close contact* with the infected worker.
4. Sanitize surfaces which the worker may have touched including tools and transportation.
5. Monitor employees who were potentially exposed. Ask daily about symptoms and potential exposures. Train employees to inform you if any symptoms appear while working and isolate any employee who has symptoms. Consider monitoring temperatures of employees.
6. If contact tracing indicates the employee was exposed while working then recording (worker comp) and reporting to Cal/OSHA if the illness leads to a fatality, in-patient hospitalization or disfigurement.
7. Review your companies code of safe practice for COVID-19 and review your infectious disease management plan and update as needed.

** Data is limited to define of close contact. Factors to consider when defining close contact include proximity (within 6 feet), the duration of exposure (e.g., longer exposure time likely increases exposure risk), whether the individual has symptoms (e.g., coughing likely increases exposure risk) and whether the individual was wearing a facemask (which can efficiently block respiratory secretions from contaminating others and the environment).

Sources: Cal/OSHA, CDC, OSHA, CA DHS and HHS

The CDC and Cal/OSHA regulations have been changing as the pandemic is progressing.  The Code of Safe Practice attached for COVID-19 reflects the most recent changes we are aware of.  In particular the return to work and quarantine guidelines have changed recently.  Please review and update your IIPP with this Code of Safe Practice.  If you have questions or need assistance in updating your programs please contact us.

IIPP CSP COVID-19 English 4.22.2020

IIPP CSP COVID-19 Spanish 4.22.2020

Cal/OSHA has released specific COVID-19 guidance for the Agriculture community. 

Cal/OSHA COVID-19 Specific Guidance for Agriculture Employers and Employees

Guía de Seguridad y Salud de CalOSHA sobre COVID-19 en la Industria Agricola

CSTC has created a COVID-19 Code of Safe Practice (E/S) for you to include in your updated Injury and Illness Prevention Program (IIPP) as directed by the Cal/OSHA guidance. 

IIPP CSP COVID-19 English 4.6.2020

IIPP CSP COVID-19 Spanish 4.6.2020

We are available to help and support you with any questions or assistance in updating your Company's specific IIPP. 

Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA or Act) Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA or Act) Posting.  Post by April 1, 2020

https://www.dol.gov/sites/dolgov/files/WHD/posters/FFCRA_Poster_WH1422_Non-Federal.pdf

To Our Treasured Clients,

During this stressful times we are here for you!  Cal/OSHA and Federal OSHA are still in operation.  I have worked with clients in California and Texas this morning to assist in responding to complaints from employees at several businesses.  We remain committed to you and your employees.  Below is a list of pertinent information.

1. Have an Infectious Disease Response Plan.  This plan should include social distances of 6 feet, work from home if possible, if an employee is  symptomatic stay home, everyone wash your hands frequently with soap and water.  Refer to our blog for a template http://www.cstcsafety.com/blog/templates-for-covid-19-programs
2. Keep safety training.  The Covid-19 protocols did not release any employer from their responsibility to train their employees.  Regulations still require equipment training, hazard communication training, chemical and pesticide training.  Here at CSTC® we are training live on-line, computer based training,  live on site training with small groups honoring the social distancing protocols..  Many of our conversations with safety managers, operations managers and owners are taking place through Zoom live on-line meetings.  Telephone calls also work. 
3. CSTC Office Operations.  CSTC® office doors are closed but we are available during normal business hours 8am to 5pm.  We are available!  We are staggering office staff hours to enable social distancing. Viewing our blogs on line will help all treasured clients keep up with changing information.  http://www.cstcsafety.com/blog
4. Essential businesses are still operating.  CSTC® essential safety  to the essential businesses are here for you.

Have a great and safe day!  Ben3

Ben W. Laverty III,  PhD, CSP, FACFE, REPA

President/ CEO

California Safety Training Corporation

(O) 661-377-8300

(C ) 661-343-1378

ben@cstcsafety.com

Here are the latest versions of the COVID-19 posters for your employees, available now in English and in Spanish

If you are considered an essential business then please use this template to issue a letter to your employees so they can travel.

We are contacting you to let you know we are still operating because many of you are considered essential businesses that must stay in operation. We will continue to provide safety services.

Facebook has exploded with useful content, and this document lists a lot of Education Companies offering free subscriptions with Temporary School Closures. The list is being updated all the time, there is an email address in the document where you can email to have more resources to add to the list.

Education Companies Offering Free Subscriptions due to School Closingshttps://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1RRv9cENXMp1frTxMmGv3HrNkag6e2RqRZirpHSRzy44/htmlview?fbclid=IwAR3K0CQ3e3mVVo33kSygbxjNqFZBpN0ruib-9jRNMiYW6CH4lUDYFAxlAa0&sle=true#gid=0

There is a group called Amazon Education Resources: https://www.facebook.com/groups/445786889466638/

There is also a closed group https://www.facebook.com/groups/Temporaryschoolclosuresupport/?notif_id=1583892698579939&notif_t=group_r2j_approved 

We hope some of these resources help lift the burden under these hard times.