You Have the Right to a Safe and Healthy Workplace
Your employer must offer masks, provide for 6 feet of physical distancing at work wherever possible, inform employees of COVID-19 exposure at work, provide training on safe practices, and take additional precautions.You have the Right to Refuse Unsafe Work when your employer does not follow California workplace health and safety requirements. Before refusing to do unsafe work, talk to your employer to see if there are safer alternatives, such as working from home or using proper protective equipment like masks.
For more information, see Your Workplace Rights During COVID-19 Poster: English | Spanish | Chinese (Traditional) | Vietnamese (last updated January 2021; additional languages coming soon).
SUSPECTED OR CONFIRMED CASE OF COVID-19 IN THE WORKPLACE
If you are a worker who suspects or is confirmed to have COVID-19, you should immediately separate yourself from other people at your workplace (e.g., coworkers, consumers, etc.) and go home; if you suspect or are confirmed to have COVID-19 while away from the workplace, you should notify your supervisor and stay home.
In accordance with the Alameda County COVID-19 Isolation Health Order, all individuals who have been diagnosed with or are likely to have COVID-19 must immediately isolate themselves in their home or another residence without leaving their place of isolation, except to receive necessary medical care (see COVID-19 Isolation Instructions: English | Spanish). Workers should not return to work until they have consulted a healthcare provider and/or met the criteria to discontinue home isolation.
RETURNING TO WORK AFTER COVID-19
Table 1. COVID-19 Return-to-Work Criteria
Symptom-Based Strategy |
Time-Based Strategy |
With Symptoms |
Without Symptoms |
Persons with COVID-19 who had symptoms and were directed to care for themselves at home may discontinue isolation once all the following three (3) conditions have been met:
|
Persons with laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 who have not had any symptoms and were directed to care for themselves at home may discontinue isolation once the following condition has been met:
|
For additional details, see Alameda County Public Health Department’s Criteria for Returning to Work after Isolation or Quarantine for COVID-19: English | Spanish
For additional details about returning to work after COVID-19, see Criteria for Returning to Work after Isolation or Quarantine for COVID-19: English | Spanish and/or Open Letter to Employers Regarding Clearance Testing: English | Arabic | Chinese (Simplified) | Chinese (Traditional) | Khmer | Korean | Spanish | Tagalog | Vietnamese (ACPHD, 8/12/2020)
COVID-19 TESTING
Workers without close contact with the person who tested positive for COVID-19 can return to work immediately after cleaning and disinfection of affected workplace areas.
Please note, however, health care personnel and staff at Skilled Nursing Facilities (SNFs), Long-Term Care Facilities (LTCFs), Residential Care for the Elderly (RCFE) and other residential sites, will have additional restrictions when returning to work after having COVID-19. See CDC’s guidance for health care personnel return-to-work criteria.
CLEANING AND DISINFECTING
PREVENTING COVID-19 IN THE WORKPLACE
- If you are sick, do not come to work.
- Remain 6 feet apart from others, whenever feasible.
- Wear a face covering whenever in the same area as others.
- Wash your hands frequently, with soap and water (or use hand sanitizer with 60%+ alcohol).
- Do not touch your eyes, nose, or mouth with unwashed hands.
- Disinfect commonly touched areas, daily.
Pre-Screening
Conduct a self-assessment of your temperature and symptoms prior to the start of each work shift. Ideally, temperature checks should occur before you enter your workplace.
Regular Monitoring
Under the supervision of your employer’s occupational health program, monitor yourself for COVID-19 symptoms.
Face Covering Requirement
Wear a face covering whenever in the same area as others in the workplace. Employers can issue facemasks or can approve workers’ supplied cloth face coverings in the event of shortages.
Social Distancing Requirement
Whenever possible, maintain a six-foot distance from others and practice social distancing, as work duties permit.
Daily Cleaning and Disinfecting
Clean and disinfect your work area, daily.
What are Alameda County’s personnel screening guidelines for the workplace?
Employers should require that all personnel (e.g., workers, contractors, volunteers, etc.) to conduct a self-assessment of symptoms and possible exposure to COVID-19 before the start of each shift. See COVID-19 Self-Assessment for Personnel for more information.
COVID-19 WORKER PROTECTION
For more information about the Right to Refuse Work, see Health & Safety Rights: Facts for California Workers (Cal/OSHA).
You may also file a complaint with Cal/OSHA if you are working in an unsafe or unhealthy workplace.
Furthermore, if you work for an employer or business licensed by or registered with the Labor Commissioner, and if that employer or business requires you to work in violation of the local public health order, you may contact the Labor Commissioner’s Licensing and Registration Unit.
- Resource Toolkit for Businesses, Workers, and Job Seekers Impacted by COVID-19 (AC-WDB)
- Public Works Safety Protocol During COVID-19 (AC-PWA)
- Worker Safety and Support during COVID-19 (CDC)
Table 2. Benefits for Workers Impacted by COVID-19
Benefits for Workers Impacted by COVID-19 |
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Program |
Eligibility Criteria |
What |
Benefits and How to File |
Disability InsuranceClick to Learn More |
If you are unable to work due to medical quarantine or illness related to COVID-19 (certified by a medical professional) | Short-term benefit payments to eligible workers who have a full or partial loss of wages due to a non-work-related illness, injury, or pregnancy. | Approximately 60-70 percent of wages (depending on income); ranges from $50-$1,300 a week for up to 52 weeks. File a Disability Insurance claim |
Paid Family LeaveClick to Learn More |
If you are unable to work because you are caring for an ill or quarantined family member with COVID-19 (certified by a medical professional) | Up to eight weeks of benefit payments to eligible workers who have a full or partial loss of wages because they need time off work to care for a seriously ill family member. | Approximately 60-70 percent of wages (depending on income); ranges from $50-$1,300 a week for up to 8 weeks. File a Paid Family Leave claim |
Unemployment Insurance (and any extended UI benefits programs)Click to Learn More |
If you have lost your job or have had your hours reduced for reasons related to COVID-19 | Partial wage replacement benefit payments to workers who lose their job or have their hours reduced, through no fault of their own. | Range from $40-$450 per week for up to 26 weeks (plus additional weeks under extended UI benefits programs) File an Unemployment Insurance claim |
Pandemic Unemployment AssistanceClick to Learn More |
If you have lost your job or business or have had your hours or services reduced for reasons related to COVID-19 | Partial wage replacement benefit payments for business owners, self-employed, independent contractors, those who have limited work history, those who have collected all UI benefits for which they are eligible, and others not eligible for regular UI benefits who are unemployed, partially unemployed, unable to work or unavailable to work as a direct result of COVID-19. | Range from $167-$450 per week for up to 39 weeks. File a Pandemic Unemployment Assistance claim |
California Paid Sick LeaveClick to Learn More |
If you or a family member are sick or for preventive care, including when civil authorities recommend quarantine, isolation, or stay-at-home | The leave you have accumulated, or your employer has provided to you under the Paid Sick Leave law. This may be 1 hour accrued for every 30 hours worked or 3 days/24 hours provided per year; employer may cap accrual at 48 hours and use at 3 days or 24 hours, whichever is greater, within a 12-month period. | Paid to you at your regular rate of pay or an average based on the past 90 days. If accrued sick leave is denied, file a Wage claim |
Workers’ CompensationClick to Learn More |
If you were infected with COVID-19 at work, you may be eligible for workers’ compensation benefits. (Your COVID-19 illness is presumed to be work-related if you: reported to your employer’s worksite between March 19 and July 5, 2020; are a first responder or health care worker in contact with COVID-19 patients; or tested positive for COVID-19 during a COVID-19 outbreak at your workplace.) | Under the Executive Order you may receive temporary disability (TD) payments after exhausting specific federal or state COVID-19 paid sick leave benefits. You may be entitled to TD payments for up to 104 weeks. TD payments stop when either you return to work, your doctor releases you for work, or your doctor says your illness has improved as much as it is going to. | TD generally pays two-thirds of the gross wages you lose while you are recovering from a work-related illness or injury, up to maximum weekly amount set by law. In addition, eligible workers are entitled to medical treatment and additional payments if a doctor determines you suffered a permanent disability because of the illness. File a Workers’ Compensation claim |
Table adapted from Coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) Resources for Employers and Workers (California Labor and Workforce Development Agency)
Worker Resources
- Your Workplace Rights During COVID-19 Poster: English | Spanish | Chinese (traditional) | Vietnamese (updated January 2021); additional languages coming soon
- Alameda County Worker Resources:
English | Spanish | Chinese (simplified) | Chinese (traditional) | Tagalog | Vietnamese - CA Dept. of Industrial Relations
- COVID-19 Labor Law Information
- Cal/OSHA COVID-19 Guidance and Resources
- Cal/OSHA Emergency Regulations to Protect Workers from COVID-19 in Effect
- Filing Complaints Against Employers (ACPHD):
English | Spanish | Chinese (simplified) | Chinese (traditional) | Tagalog | Vietnamese - All Service Toolkit for Workers, Businesses, and Job Seekers during COVID-19 (ACWDB)
- Worker Safety and Support during COVID-19 (CDC)
- Essential Workers Searching for Child Care (Alameda County)
- Video: Counseling for Health Care Workers during COVID-19 (Pro Bono Counseling Project)
- Hotels for Healthcare Workers (CDPH)