On June 17, 2020, St. Petersburg’s Mayor, Rick Kriseman, issued an executive order that requires businesses within the city to “implement COVID-19 mitigation and contingency planning” and require “employees of a business in the City [to] wear a face covering while in areas of the business open to the public. You can click here to view a full copy of this order. As usual, the devil is in the details, which are outlined below.
Relevant Definitions
Business is defined in the order to mean any business entitiy that is allowed to operate within the City under any applicable State Order or County Order. By using the word “operate” it does not seem that the City is just restricting its order to businesses with a physical location in the City, so if you are doing work in the City, even though your office may be outside the City, the order likely applies to you.
Employees include actual employees, agents, contractors, volunteers, or any other person engaged in the day-to-day operation of a business.
Face cover means personal protective equipment the covers the mouth and noes, a cloth face covering that cover the mouth and nose as described by the CDC, or any equivalent face covering.
COVID-19 Mitigation and Contingency Plan
Effective 5pm on June 19, 2020, a business must ensure that it meets or exceeds the following requirements for COVID-19 mitigation and contingency planning
The business must develop and update a written plan for COVID-19 mitigation and contingency planning that addresses the topics in the CDC Planning Guidance or OSHA planning guidance. Plans can be based on the CDC, OSHA, or both. The plan must reflet any industry specific guidance provided by the CDC or OSHA (e.g. best practices for gyms, restaurants, etc…) In the event of a conclift, the specific industry industry guidance controls. The business is responsible for updatingthe plan as guidance is changed.
The plan must be made available to all employees. Employees must receive training on the plan and the business must ensure they comply with the plan.
The plan must be available to patrons of the business and aspects of the plan that apply to patrons (such as social distancing or face coverings) are clearly communicated through signage or other means.
Business must ensure the plan is available to the public so that a member of the business can make informed decisions about patronizing the business.
Face Coverings
Effective June 19, 2020 at 5:00pm, emploees of a business in the City will be required to wear a face covering in certain areas of the business under the following rules:
Business owners and their employees must wear face coverings while in an area of the business open to the public
The face covering must cover the face and nose
A person is not required to wear a face covering under the following circumstances:
Wearing a face covering is fundamentally incompatible with a job task performed by a person
When eating or drinking
While exercising or using exercise equipment
While communicating with someone who is hearing-impaired
If the person has trouble breathing or is unconscious or incapacitated
If the mask yould be detrimental to health, safety, or security
When necessary to obtain governmental or medical services
If wearing a mask conflicts with the Americans with Disabilities Act or HIPAA
Penalties
Violations of this executive order are considered a violation of City Code, and can be punished by fines of up to $500 and/or imprisonment of up to 60 days.
Practical Takeaways
First, if you have a physical location or office in the City of St. Petersburg, and a portion of that office is open to the public, even if it’s just a reception area, you need to comply with this order. It would not surprise me if City employees or officers performed checks on businesses to ensure compliance given the health concerns at issue.
Second, if you are working on a jobsite in the City of St. Petersburg, I also would attempt to be compliant with the order. The term business is not limited to physical locations, but rather, applies to operations within the City. Maybe this was unintentional, but until it is clear how the order is being enforced, you run the risk of receiving a fine if you are not compliant.
Third, have a written COVID-19 plan. The CDC has provided a checklist that you can view by visiting https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/organizations/checklist.html . OSHA also has guidelines you can view by clicking here. These plans to not have to be lengthy, but they do need to be in writing. If you need help putting together a plan, please feel free to reach out to me, or contact your own attorney or HR/compliance professional.
Fourth, put up signs in the areas of your business open to the public. The signs should require them to wear an appropriate face covering. Put a sign on the entrance to the public areas of your business notifying customers of the same. And add a pop up or something similar on your website advising the public of the same. Have hand sanitizer available in the public spaces of your office and indicate this on the signs as well. If you’re on a jobsite, wear a mask and carry hand sanitizer with you. And ensure that your customers are comfortable with you performing work there.
If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out.