COVID-19 Safety Plans: Support for B.C.’s Tourism and Hospitality Employers

• • Keeping a distance of two metres away from others can help stop the spread of contaminated droplets while talking, singing, shouting, coughing or sneezing and should be promoted where possible.
  • Consider reducing the number of people in different areas of the workplace to help promote physical distancing. For some workplaces, this could mean reintroducing an occupancy limit for workers and guests, including in confined areas like break rooms, meeting rooms, changing rooms, washrooms and elevators.
  • In the case of restaurants, cafes and bars, having space or barriers between tables can reduce the possibility of transmission but are not required by order of the PHO any longer.
  • Other measures to support physical distancing include working remotely, holding virtual meetings instead of in-person meetings and changing work schedules to reduce the number of workers at any one time.
  • Consider creating pods or teams of workers who work together exclusively to minimize the risk of broad transmission in the workplace.

  DOWNLOAD: Occupancy Limit Poster

  DOWNLOAD: Physical distancing

• Barriers can be made of any material that blocks the transmission of air. For many work tasks, including guest-facing activities, barriers need to be transparent. These barriers can be made of plexiglass, acrylic, polycarbonate or similar materials. Opaque barriers may also work for some environments, such as back-of-house office cubicles.
• In order for barriers to be effective, they must be positioned so that they block the transmission of droplets produced by breathing, talking, coughing or sneezing between the “breathing zone” of people on each side. A person’s breathing zone extends 30 cm (12 inches) in every direction from the person’s nose.
• Barriers should be positioned to accommodate the heights of the tallest and shortest people who will likely be near it. Barriers should also be wide enough to account for the normal movement of people of different heights.
• If a barrier needs an opening to pass documents, money or other materials through it, the opening should be positioned so that it is out of the breathing zone of people on either side of it. (These barriers should also be cleaned more regularly, as they are commonly touched surfaces).
• Barriers should not be designed or installed in such a way that they impede ventilation in the room.
• Free-standing barriers must be stable so that they won’t fall and injure anyone.
• Hanging barriers mustn’t be able to swing, as this can result in air being wafted from one side of the barrier to the other.
• Barriers must not hinder a person’s escape in case of emergency.
• Barriers must be included in your daily cleaning schedule and cleaned regularly to prevent the accumulation and transmission of contaminants. Follow the manufacturer’s instructions for both the barrier and the cleaning product used, to ensure they do not damage or degrade the barrier.

DOWNLOAD: Designing effective barriers

DOWNLOAD: Prevent the spread of communicable disease: ventilation and air circulation

• Everyone in the workplace should practise healthy hand hygiene, including regular hand washing, for at least 20 seconds
• If soap and water aren’t available, an alcohol-based hand sanitizer should be used instead.
• Coughs and sneezes should be covered and hands should be washed afterwards to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
• Avoid touching your face and always wash your hands after doing so.

DOWNLOAD: Prevent the spread of communicable disease: Handwashing

DOWNLOAD: Prevent the spread of communicable disease: cover coughs and sneezes

• • Review your policies for managing sickness. Ensure staff displaying COVID-19 symptoms or who test positive for COVID-19 do not come to work, follow public health guidance and isolate for the prescribed period. This is different depending on whether the worker is vaccinated or unvaccinated:
    • For fully vaccinated individuals, the isolation period is five days from the initial onset of symptoms, or whenever symptoms cease, whichever is longer.
    • For unvaccinated individuals, the isolation period is ten days from the onset of symptoms, or whenever symptoms cease, whichever is longer.
    • If individuals continue to be unwell after the five or ten days, they should continue to self-isolate until the symptoms have gone.
    • Staying at home if you are sick is the most effective way of preventing a workplace outbreak.

  DOWNLOAD: Protect yourself and others from influenza

  DOWNLOAD: Stay home if you are sick

  DOWNLOAD: How to self-isolate after a test

• • Maintain enhanced cleaning and disinfection practices, using cleaning solutions that you have approved for use in your workplace. Depending on how many people are in the space and how it’s used, you may need to clean some spaces more frequently.
  • There are a number of products you can use for disinfection, including consumer products that don’t require a safety data sheet. However, it’s still important to follow whatever safety information is available for the product. Use all products with caution, as directed on the label, to avoid introducing other hazards into your workplace.
  • Ensure that workers tasked with cleaning and disinfecting duties have appropriate training and materials to do the job safely.

  DOWNLOAD: Cleaning public spaces

• • Face coverings are no longer required by PHO Order in all public indoor settings in B.C. for all people born in 2016 or earlier, regardless of vaccination status. (A face covering includes a medical or non-medical mask or a tightly woven mask, such as a cotton mask).
  • As we transition away from the provincial requirement, employers are able to keep mandatory masking in their workplaces if they deem it necessary. Variables such as staff comfortability, building ventilation, and patron volume should be taken into consideration when deciding whether or not to keep the rule in place.
  • When layered with other recommended public health measures, a well-constructed, well-fitting and properly worn mask can help prevent you and others from being exposed to COVID-19. No matter which type of mask you are using, proper fit is a key factor in its effectiveness. This means that the mask must cover the nose, mouth and chin and there shouldn’t be any gaps.
  • To make mask use as effective as possible, it’s essential to make sure they are being used, stored and cleaned properly.

  DOWNLOAD: Masks are mandatory in this workplace

  DOWNLOAD: How to use a mask

  DOWNLOAD: How to make your mask fit properly