Skip to main content

What’s New This Week In California COVID law?

  • Email
  • Linkedin

California employers have certainly had to be on their toes these last two years when it comes to dealing with COVID in the workplace. This week was no different.

The Labor Commissioner just released the mandatory poster regarding the 2022 version of COVID Supplemental Paid Sick Leave. English and Spanish versions of the poster can be found here, https://www.dir.ca.gov/dlse/COVID19resources/COVIDPostings.html. The poster is required to be posted in the workplace, but if an employer’s covered employees do not frequent a workplace, the employer may satisfy the notice requirement by disseminating notice through electronic means, such as by email.

The Labor Commissioner has also promised to publish FAQs regarding the 2022 COVID Supplemental Paid Sick Leave, so employers should check back regularly to the webpage linked above to find the FAQs. The FAQs usually explain the nuances of these new laws.

California also had a major change this week regarding masks. The general California state indoor mask mandate was lifted on February 16, 2022. But that does not mean that all workplaces can now be mask-free. Instead, Cal/OSHA continues to require masks for unvaccinated workers indoors and/or for employees (regardless of vaccination status) who are returning to work after quarantine/isolation. Additionally, some county health departments, like Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, still have their own mask mandate for all employees indoors regardless of vaccination status. The statewide order does not trump any more restrictive local orders. Some counties have indicated that they will be revisiting their mask requirements in the near future, so once again, employers should be ready for additional changes. We know you’ve had a lot of practice with that.