By: Laurie A. McCarthy, Esquire
Ten weeks after the stay-at-home order was issued for the entire Southeastern Pennsylvania region, things are expected to change. On Thursday afternoon Gov. Tom Wolf confirmed that the following counties will move from the red to the yellow phase on Friday, June, 5, 2020: Berks, Bucks, Chester, Delaware, Lackawanna, Lancaster, Lehigh, Northampton, Montgomery, and Philadelphia.
What does this mean for you and your business?
Work
- Telework should continue where feasible.
- Businesses can resume with in-person operations but need to follow the guidance for business previously issued by the governor’s office.
- Child care can reopen following specific safety guidance.
- For offices, the reopening guidance includes specific rules around cleaning shared work spaces, limits meeting sizes, and recommends staggered work start times. Businesses must develop a plan in the event a worker becomes infected with the virus, include mandating temperature checks of all employees and identifying close contacts.
- All businesses must follow CDC and DOH guidance for social distancing and cleaning.
Social restrictions
- The stay-at-home order is lifted.
- Gatherings of more than 25 are prohibited.
- In-person retail is permitted, but curbside and delivery is preferable. Public-facing businesses and retailers will have to follow specific rules, such as limiting capacity in buildings, installing shields at registers, and mandating mask wearing among employees and customers.
- Restaurants and bars can serve outdoors, carry-out, and delivery. Indoor dining rooms will remain closed.
What remains the same?
- Restrictions at congregate/long-term care settings and correctional facilities will remain in place, meaning they cannot have visitors.
- There is still no indoor dining at restaurants.
- Indoor recreation, health and wellness facilities and person care services such as gyms, spas, barber shops, hair salons, nail salons, and other entities that provide massage therapy, as well as entertainment venues like casinos and theaters remain closed.
county transitions to the yellow phase will be closely monitored for increased risk, such as significant outbreaks of COVID-19. If overall risk remains mitigated for fourteen days, transition to the green phase will be considered.
Employers navigating the complexities of reopening business and bringing employees back to work as we move to the yellow phase of reopening may wish to consult with experienced legal counsel to ensure legal compliance and to help minimize their potential liability exposure.
The Law Firm of DiOrio & Sereni, LLP is a full-service law firm in Media, Delaware County, Pennsylvania. We strive to help people, businesses and institutions throughout Southeastern Pennsylvania solve legal problems – and even prevent legal problems before they occur. To learn more about the full range of our specific practice areas, please visit www.dioriosereni.com or contact Laurie A. McCarthy, Esquire at 610-565-5700 or at [email protected]
Like what you see? Join our mailing list
