Virginia recently became the first state to impose enforceable COVID-19 safety requirements in the workplace — not just guidelines — which has the trucking industry scrambling to figure out how the new law will affect drivers and operations.
The final rule, made public July 17 by the Virginia Department of Labor and Industry (DOLI), applies to broad sections of private industry, including trucking.
All companies based in Virginia will be required to classify employees by risk level (very high, high, medium and lower) based on workplace hazards and job tasks, establish policies for employees to self-monitor for COVID-19 signs and to report symptoms, and put in place procedures to prevent employees who are known to have or are suspected of having COVID-19 from infecting co-workers.