IMPORTANT BUSINESS UPDATE
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Expanding Worker Protections as Michigan Reengages Economic Sectors
Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed executive order 2020-91 to ensure robust protections for Michigan workers as she continues to re-engage parts of the economy. This executive order requires all businesses to adhere to strict safety guidelines to protect their workers, their patrons, and their communities from infection. To foster compliance, the governor also signed Executive Directive 2020-6 to appoint a Director of COVID-19 Workplace Safety within the Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity (LEO).
Under Executive Order 2020-91, businesses that resume in-person work must, among other things, develop a COVID-19 preparedness and response plan and make it available to employees and customers by June 1.
Businesses must also provide COVID-19 training to workers that covers, at a minimum, workplace infection-control practices, the proper use of PPE, steps workers must take to notify the business or operation of any symptoms of COVID-19 or a suspected or confirmed diagnosis of COVID-19, and how to report unsafe working conditions.
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Executive Order Allows Research Laboratories to Resume Operations
On Friday, Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed Executive Order 2020-90, which allows laboratory research to resume under stringent precautionary measures.
The Safer at Home order, Executive Order 2020-77, allows some previously suspended work and activities to resume based on an evaluation of public health metrics and an assessment of the statewide risks and benefits. This now includes laboratory research.
Research laboratories (but not laboratories that perform diagnostic testing) must adhere to stringent workplace safeguards, including:
- Assigning dedicated entry point(s) and/or times into lab buildings
- Conducting a daily entry screening protocol for workers, contractors, suppliers, and any other individuals entering a worksite, including a questionnaire covering symptoms and suspected or confirmed exposure to people with possible COVID-19 infections, together with, if possible, a temperature screening
- Creating protocols and/or checklists to conform to the facility’s COVID-19 preparedness and response plan and training workers to adhere to the plan
- Suspending all non-essential in-person visitors, including visiting scholars and undergraduate students, until further notice
- Training workers on the proper use of lab protection and personal protective equipment
- Establishing and implementing a plan for distributing face coverings
- Creating capacity limits for labs
- Closing open workspaces, cafeterias and conference rooms
- Including tape on the floor to mark workspaces for 6-foot distances in labs and create one-way traffic flow where possible
- Requiring all office and dry lab work to be conducted remotely
- Minimizing the use of shared lab equipment and shared lab tools and creating protocols for disinfecting lab equipment and lab tools
- Providing disinfecting wipes and requiring workers to wipe down their workstations at least twice daily
- Implementing an audit and compliance procedure to ensure cleaning criteria are followed
- Establishing a clear reporting process for any symptomatic individual or any individual with a confirmed case of COVID-19, including the notification of lab leaders and the maintenance of a central log
- Cleaning and disinfecting the work site when a worker is sent home with symptoms or with a confirmed case of COVID-19
- Sending any potentially exposed coworkers’ home if there is a positive case in the facility
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Governor Reopens Retail, Restaurants, and Offices in Upper Penninsula, Traverse City Regions
Businesses that reopen must adopt workplace safety measures to protect employees, customers.
Executive Order 2020-92, allows for the reopening, in two regions, of retail businesses, office work that cannot be done remotely, and restaurants and bars with limited seating. The two regions are both in the northern part of the state—specifically, MERC regions 6 and 8, as detailed in the governor’s MI Safe Start Plan to re-engage Michigan’s economy.
The partial reopening will take effect on Friday, May 22. Cities, villages, and townships may choose to take a more cautious course if they wish: the order does not abridge their authority to restrict the operations of restaurants or bars, including limiting such establishments to outdoor seating.
“The data shows that these regions in Michigan are seeing consistent encouraging trends when it comes to the number of cases, deaths, and the percent of tests that are positive for COVID-19,” said MDHHS Chief Deputy for Health and Chief Medical Executive Dr. Joneigh Khaldun. “It’s important to note that these businesses must take special precautions to protect Michiganders. I also encourage everyone to continue to wear a mask in public, maintain a 6 foot distance from others, and to remain vigilant in washing their hands often. This will help prevent a second surge in cases in our state.”
All businesses that will reopen in regions 6 and 8 must adopt the safety measures outlined in Executive Order 2020-91. That means they must, among other things, provide COVID-19 training to workers that covers, at a minimum, workplace infection-control practices, the proper use of PPE, steps workers must take to notify the business or operation of any symptoms of COVID-19 or a suspected or confirmed diagnosis of COVID-19, and how to report unsafe working conditions. Restaurants and bars will also have to limit capacity to 50% of their normal seating, to keep groups at least six feet from one another, to require their servers to wear face coverings, and to follow rigorous disinfection protocols.
Region 6 in the governor’s MI Safe Start Plan includes the following counties: Manistee, Wexford, Missaukee, Roscommon, Benzie, Grand Traverse, Kalkaska, Crawford, Leelanau, Antrim, Otsego, Montmorency, Alpena, Charlevoix, Cheboygan, Presque Isle, and Emmet.
Region 8 in the governor’s MI Safe Start Plan includes the following counties: Gogebic, Ontonagon, Houghton, Keweenaw, Iron, Baraga, Dickinson, Marquette, Menominee, Delta, Alger, Schoolcraft, Luce, Mackinac, and Chippewa.
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Temporary Price Gouging Restrictions Extended
Executive Order 2020-89 extends enhanced price gouging restrictions during the continuing COVID-19 pandemic.
Consistent with prior executive orders on price gouging, Executive Order 2020-89 prohibits a person from selling any product more than 20% higher than what the person offered or charged for that product as of the date prior to the governor’s first state of emergency order (March 9, 2020), unless it is not an emergency supply and costs more than $1,000.
Merchants can increase prices by more than 20% if there was an increase in cost of bringing the product to market or an extraordinary discount was in effect as of March 9, 2020.
The new order takes effect immediately and remains in effect until June 12, 2020
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Resources for Business and the Community
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The Saginaw County Chamber of Commerce maintains a list of federal, state, and local resources that provide aid and information for your business, employees and our community during the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic. This information is ever-changing, please check the Chamber's
website,
Facebook, and your email frequently.
We will add links, resources, and updates as information becomes available. We are also converting our At A Glance Newsletter to include Coronavirus links and information as well as local updates, job availability, member coupons and most importantly Member News. Please let us know what your business is doing and how you are functioning during this uncertain time. We need to stay connected and support each other.
Reopening Plan Templates, Playbooks, and Best Practices can be found on the Saginaw Chamber/Saginaw Future joint
Reopening Business Playbook page.
If you are offering a service to help the Saginaw County Community or local businesses weather this storm, please email your information to
info@saginawchamber.org.
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Please share this page with anyone who might need a source for information or connection.
Thank you and stay healthy.
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