Covid Workplace Rights

A: Employers have to give notice to employees of the Covid-19 exposure when a “qualifying individual” may have been exposed to Covid-19. A “qualified individual” means any person who has any of the following;

1. Confirmation from a laboratory that he or she has Covid-19;
2. A positive Covid-19 diagnosis from a licensed healthcare provider;
3. An order from a public health official related to Covid-19 stating that he or she must isolate; or
4. A determination by a county public health department or via inclusion in the Covid-19 statistics of a county that he or she died from Covid-19.

A: An employer has legally received notice of a potential exposure to Covid-19 when any one of the following occurs:

1. A public health official or licensed medical provider notifies the employer “that an employee was exposed to a qualifying individual at the worksite”;
2. An employee or the employee’s emergency contact notifies the employer that the employee is a “qualifying individual”;
3. The employer’s Covid-19 testing process discloses that the employee is a “qualifying individual”; or
4. A subcontracted employer notifies the employer that a “qualifying individual” was the employer’s worksite.

A: Upon receiving notice of potential exposure to Covid-19, an employer must notify:

1. All employees on-site at the same worksite during the infectious period:
2. That they may have been exposed to Covid-19;
3. With information regarding Covid-19 related benefits to which the employee may be entitled under applicable law including, but not limited to, workers’ compensation and available sick leave, among other things.
4. All employees on the disinfection and safety plan that the employer plans to implement and complete per the guidelines of the federal Centers for Disease Control.

A: Written notice may include, but is not limited to, personal service, email, or text message if it can reasonably be anticipated to be received by the employee within one business day of sending and shall be in both English and the language understood by the majority of employees.

A: Yes. Employees’ representatives must receive notice, as well, which includes union representatives.

A: No. The employer must not reveal the name of the qualifying individual to employees as such information is protected by law.

A. If you suspect that someone at your worksite has contracted or otherwise exposed you to Covid-19, you may want to contact an attorney to discuss how you know there has been exposure, what notice has been provided to your employer, and what your employer has done to notify and otherwise protect you and other employees.