Not receiving a lot of attention this week, the City of Los Angeles published guides for businesses to begin to prepare to reopen.  Eater.com is reporting that the guide for restaurants and bars was placed on the City’s website on May 26 (even though the publication date of the guide is May 21).  The guides are for industries that are not yet permitted to reopen, but provide information to prepare for reopening.  These industries include:

The City’s website states that guides for the following industries will be published shortly:

  • Film production
  • Higher education
  • Sports & music venue

The website also provides guides for businesses that have been permitted to reopen, which include:

Restaurants & Bars – Preparation For Dine-in

The guide published for restaurants and bars sets forth similar requirements as other cities and counties.

In regards to employee health, the guidance provides recommendations, including the following:

Employee Health and Personal Hygiene
– Ask employees to confirm (and document confirmation) they have not experienced COVID-19 CDC-defined symptoms, including fever, cough, and shortness of breath, for 14 days prior to return

– Require employees who have COVID-19 CDC-defined symptoms to remain home until they are symptom-free for three days without medication

– If an employee tests positive for COVID-19, inform coworkers and customers if applicable and ensure all other coworkers are tested before returning to work; if testing is not possible inform coworkers that had close contact to self-quarantine and self-monitor for symptoms per public health guidance

– Consider developing a written plan on how to inform coworkers of positive case and how they can get tested / self-quarantine

The guidelines also set forth that restaurants and bars will need to log all employees that come on-premise for purposes of supporting public health contact tracing.

The guidelines also provide some recommendations for employee communications:

  • Communicate frequently to make employees aware of operational changes for health and safety
  • Provide details of the changes to employees, in writing
  • Encourage employees to participate and comply with new work practices
  • Conduct demonstrations and training to introduce new skills to staff before activities officially resume; examples include:
  • How to practice physical distancing/sanitizing at workstations and within dining areas
  • How to follow floor markings in facility
  • How to handle essential interactions with others at work
  • Consider a variety of communication channels and materials, including email, text messages, posters/digital displays
  • Consider communications focused on
  • Why the facility is safe and how it is following state guidelines
  • Instructions for how to prepare for arrival
  • Overview of what to expect when returning employees arrive, including new entrance guidelines, supplies, sanitation requirements, capacity limits, etc.