WorkSafeBC has released a guide for employers about how to reduce the risk of COVID-19 exposure in the workplace.
The guide asks employers to find ways to limit the number of people at a workplace where possible, such as staggering shifts and finding ways for people to work from home.
It also recommends that businesses ensure employees can remain two metres apart, provide proper hand-washing stations, and increase cleaning schedules, particularly for high-touch items.
WorkSafeBC prevention officers are also conducting inspections, focusing on “the controls that the employer can use to limit exposure, including maintaining distance between workers and ensuring adequate hygiene facilities.”
No one who is sick or who has travelled internationally within the last two weeks can come to work, the agency said.
Employers are directed to assess the risk at their workplace by doing their own walk-through and asking employees on the ground to identify potential risks.
B.C. health officials have asked people to work from home wherever possible and avoid going out in public if they can, in a bid to slow the transmission of COVID-19.
Bars, dine-in restaurants and personal services businesses are the only workplaces that have been ordered to shut down so far.
WorkSafeBC has also produced specific guidance for the construction, manufacturing and retail and foodservice industries, along with an information package for workers.