Dear Clients and Friends:
Governor Cuomo announced today that five regions, including the Southern Tier Region, Central New York Region and Mohawk Valley Region will be entering Phase 2. Businesses in this group include office based businesses (professionals and real estate), stores for in person shopping, and hair salons. A complete list of the industries included in Phase 2 are available on the NY Forward website (https://forward.ny.gov/phase-two-industries). Each business must complete a reopening plan that complies with all guidance issued by the State of New York for the specific industry and certify compliance with all guidance before reopening. Reopening guidelines include a 50 percent occupancy reduction for office buildings, appropriate use of personal protective equipment, mandatory testing for some industries and visitor logs and procedures to assist with contact tracing in the event of an infection.
Employers are encouraged to also check the Occupational Health and Safety Administration Guidance (https://www.osha.gov/Publications/OSHA3990.pdf), new guidance from the Centers from Disease Control for offices released this week (https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/office-buildings.html), and EPA cleaning guidance (https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/community/ reopen-guidance.html). OSHA has issued their first citation to a business related to coronavirus infection. Businesses need to take the safety and cleaning protocols seriously to avoid lawsuits, OSHA citations or citations, fines and shut down orders from the state.
As always, we remain available to answer your questions and assist you with the difficult decisions you are making during this process.
For a printable version of this Client Alert, click here.
| Thomas A. Conlon Partner 80 Exchange Street Binghamton, NY 13901 Phone: (607) 231-6744 Email: tconlon@hhk.com |
| John Fish Partner 80 Exchange Street Binghamton, NY 13901 Phone: (607) 231-6712 Email: jfish@hhk.com |
| Dawn J. Lanouette Partner 80 Exchange Street Binghamton, NY 13901 Phone: (607) 231-6917 Email: dlanouette@hhk.com |
Copyright © 2020 by Hinman, Howard & Kattell LLP. This Client Alert is provided as a general information service to clients and friends of Hinman, Howard & Kattell, LLP. It should not be construed as, and does not constitute legal advice on any specific matter, nor does this message create an attorney-client relationship. These materials may be considered Attorney Advertising in some states.