Establish Administrative measures

The following is an extraction from the Gazette on Consolidated Coronavirus COVID-19 Direction on Occupational Health and Safety Measures in Workplaces

20. Every employer must establish the following administrative measures:

20.1 It must undertake a risk assessment to give effect to the minimum measures required by this Direction taking into account the specific circumstances of the workplace;

20.2 if the employer employs more than 500 employees, that employer must submit a record of its risk assessment together with a written policy concerning the protection of the health and safety of its employees from COVID-19 as contemplated in section 7(1) of OHSA to–

20.2.1 its health and safety committee established in terms of section 19 of OHSA; and
20.2.2 the Department of Employment and Labour within 21 days of the commencement of this Direction;

20.3 it must take special measures to mitigate the risk of COVID-19 for vulnerable employees in accordance with the Department of Health’s Guidelines to facilitate their safe return to work or their working from home;

20.4 it must notify all workers of the contents of this Direction and the manner in which it intends to implement it;

20.5 it must notify its employees that if they are sick or have symptoms associated with COVID -19 that they must not come to work and to take paid sick leave in terms of section 22 of the BCEA;
20.6 it must appoint a manager as a COVID-19 compliance officer to-

20.6.1 oversee the implementation of the plan contemplated in clause 17.2;
20.6.2 oversee the adherence to the health and safety measures established in the workplace to give effect to requirements of this Direction including appointing employees to perform this function if the employer has more than one workplace;
20.6.3 address employee or workplace representative concerns and to keep them informed and, in any workplace in which an health and safety committee has been elected, consult with that committee on the nature of the hazard in that workplace and the measures that need to be taken;

20.7 it must ensure that the measures required by this Direction and its risk assessment plan are strictly complied with through monitoring and supervision;

20.8 it must, as far as practicable, minimize the number of workers at the workplace at any given time through rotation, staggered working hours, shift systems, remote working arrangements or similar measures in order to achieve social distancing as contemplated in clause 21 and to limit congestion in public transport and at the workplace;

20.9 it must take measures to minimize contact between workers as well as between workers and members of the public;

20.10 it must provide workers with information that raises awareness in any form or manner, including where reasonably practicable leaflets and notices placed in conspicuous places in the workplace informing workers of the dangers of the virus, the manner of its transmission, the measures to prevent transmission such as personal hygiene, social distancing, use of masks, cough etiquette and where to go for screening or testing if presenting with COVID-19 related symptoms;

20.11 if a worker has been diagnosed with COVID-19, an employer must-

20.11.1 inform the Department of Health and the Department of Employment and Labour; and
20.11.2 investigate the mode of exposure including any control failure and review its risk assessment to ensure that the necessary controls and PPE requirements are in place;
20.11.3 determine the need to temporarily close the affected work area for decontamination using an incident -based risk assessment with due regard to the Department of Health’s Guidelines; and
20.11.4 it must give administrative support to any contact-tracing measures implemented by the Department of Health.