The following COVID-19 infection control measures must be enforced for businesses providing essential services to remain open.
- Teleworking must be maximized, especially for individuals at the highest risk of poor outcomes, such as those over age 60 and those with chronic underlying conditions.
- Follow all State and CDC guidelines and recommendations for social distancing for staff and customers. Social distancing means remaining out of congregate settings, avoiding mass gatherings, and maintaining distance (approximately 6 feet or 2 meters) from others when possible (with the exception being healthcare workers using appropriate PPE).
- Screen all staff for symptoms and illness prior to entering the worksite.
- Separate sick employees from other individuals immediately.
- Prohibit employees who have been told they must be isolated or quarantined from work until they have been cleared by DPH or a medical professional.
- Have handwashing stations and/or hand sanitizer readily available for all employees throughout the day. Staff should wash hands with warm water and soap when entering and leaving the worksite.
- Enforce cough and sneeze hygiene, such as coughing into your elbow.
- Follow all State and CDC guidelines and recommendations for environmental cleaning.
- Prohibit visitors inside worksites unless they are providing essential services.
Employers must stress to employees that they are not to come to work when they are sick. We recognize that this is a difficult ask – especially for small businesses – and for employees whose paychecks depend on every hour that they do work. But limiting public interactions of those who are sick is an important mitigation strategy to help limit the spread of COVID-19 in Delaware.
This is a rapidly evolving situation in Delaware, in the U.S., and across the world. Recommendations from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the World Health Organization (WHO) are subject to frequent change.