Employees statewide to don cloth facial covering at the workplace starting June 8th.
Governor Jay Inslee announced new safety and health requirements for businesses operating in Washington’s “Safe Start” plan. Beginning June 8, all employees will be required to wear a cloth facial covering, except when working alone in an office, vehicle, or at a job site, or when the job has no in-person interaction.
The announcement brings together general requirements for all business operations, including essential businesses operating outside of industry-specific guidance, and includes new requirements for facial coverings.
Employers must provide cloth facial coverings to employees, unless their exposure dictates a higher level of protection under the Department of Labor and Industries’ safety requirements. Refer to Coronavirus Facial Covering and Mask Requirements for additional details. Employees may choose to wear their own facial coverings at work, provided it meets the minimum requirements.
Employers must also post signage at their place of business strongly encouraging customers to wear cloth facial coverings. Businesses are encouraged to require customers to wear cloth facial coverings, in order to protect employees from exposure to COVID-19 in the workplace.
See the governor’s Medium post for more information.
In addition, the Division of Occupational Safety & Health (DOSH) has just released Basic Employee Training on COVID-19 Infection Prevention to provide employers the Template framework to meet their obligation under Washington safety and health rules to train employees on COVID-19 Transmission and their specific worksite policies.
The training is available in both English and Spanish and is posted on the DOSH Coronavirus/COVID-19 Topic Page
