|
New Statewide Indoor Mask Requirement goes into effect Monday, August 23
(From MRSC)
Governor Inslee has announced a new statewide indoor mask requirement that will take effect Monday, August 23. View the Order of the Secretary of Health 20-03.4 here. The order requires all individuals five and older to wear facial coverings indoors, regardless of vaccination status.
- Exemptions include working alone indoors, as well as fully vaccinated individuals when working in areas not generally accessible to the public and when no non-employees are present. The order defines 'working alone' as a person isolated from interactions with others and having little or no expectation of in-person interruptions. Examples include a sole occupant in an office with a closed door who is unlikely to be visited.
- People are not required to wear face coverings outdoors. However, the Department of Health recommends all people, regardless of vaccination status, wear face coverings in crowded outdoor settings (such as events/fairs), where there is decreased ability to consistently maintain physical distance between non-household members.
- If a local jurisdiction has imposed stricter requirements, the stricter requirements must be followed.
- For more information, see the governor's Medium page.
COVID-19 Vaccination Requirements
On August 9, 2021, Governor Inslee issued Proclamation 21-14, requiring most state employees to be fully vaccinated by October 18. The vaccination requirement applies to WSCC and compensated employees of the WSCC and therefore does not apply to conservation districts. If a conservation district decides to adopt similar vaccine requirements, they need to be aware of the laws that many impact mandatory vaccination policies, including the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Civil Rights Act of 1964. Learn more in this MRSC blog post and this Society for Human Resource Management article.
Based on advice from MRSC (see blog post linked above), before fully reopening, a local government should put into place a clear vaccination policy so employees understand what is expected of them once they return to the workplace. MRSC has posted some vaccination policy examples on their COVID-19 Operations and Personnel Issues webpage.
Questions?
If you have any questions or would like to talk with someone, please reach out to your Regional Manager.
|
|
|
Copyright 2021 Washington State Conservation Commission
300 Desmond Drive SE, Lacey, WA 98503 | scc.wa.gov
|
|
|
|
