New COVID Safety Protocols
The new COVID safety protocol protects ALL workers at the Lab and allows those who need to work onsite more access. The Lab does not require you to be vaccinated. Instead, we are asking that you declare your vaccine status so that we may require the proper COVID safety protocol to keep you and our community safe.
This protocol was designed based on DOE, Cal/OSHA, and UC requirements. Below are some of the highlights of the new protocol, which took effect Monday, July 12. You can find more details in the COVID safety plan.
If you were vaccinated through the Lab, or have already uploaded your vaccination card, or completed the COVID Vaccination Declaration questionnaire, your information is in the system and you do not need to complete the questionnaire. If you have not done this, please do so as soon as possible. You will follow the protocol prescribed for you in the Lab’s Occupational Health Record system.
- Protocol A is for fully vaccinated people who have uploaded a copy of their vaccine card, completed the COVID Vaccine Declaration questionnaire, or were vaccinated through the Lab. Under Protocol A:
- Face covers are optional but not required.
- There is no physical distancing requirement from each other as long as other people are also vaccinated. You can gather in conference rooms, be in adjoining cubes, have lunch together, share a vehicle, and go on walks.
- Protocol B is for those who are not vaccinated; are seeking a disability, medical, or religious exemption; or who have not filled out the COVID Vaccine Declaration questionnaire. Under Protocol B:
- You will need to maintain a social distance of at least six feet from other people.
- A face cover is required. You may remove your face cover when:
- Actively eating or drinking and you can maintain more than six feet of distance from other people, whether indoors or outdoors.
- You are outdoors and more than six feet from other people.
- You are alone in an enclosed workspace with the door closed
- You will need to be tested weekly for COVID at the Lab at no cost.
- You must use a respirator if you are working within six feet of others for more than a total of 15 minutes in a 24 hour period.
- If a work group includes people who follow both protocols, the persons who are following Protocol B must keep their face covers on and stay six feet apart from others in the space.
- Everyone in either Protocol A or B will need to:
- Have management permission before coming to a Lab site
- Accept Work Planning and Control for onsite work (if not already completed)
- Complete the LBL 0012 training course (if not already completed)
- Complete the weekly symptom check
- Face covers will be required in the following situations no matter whether you are in Protocol A or B:
- On a Lab shuttle
- While in Health Services Building 26
- Continue to clean frequently touched surfaces
- Stay home if you have COVID symptoms or have been in close contact with someone who has COVID
- Business guests, visitors, vendors, and delivery personnel will, for the time being, need to maintain physical distance and wear a face cover.
- The Lab will provide specially marked lanyards that indicate the wearer is vaccinated to guide in maintaining the proper distancing. Wearing a lanyard is voluntary.
For those who are vaccinated, wearing a face cover is a personal choice. Supervisors are not going to ask, nor should they, about the vaccine status of you or co-workers. Instead, it is important to note that following the Lab’s Health Pledge for the past 16 months has kept us all safe; please continue to make the health of you, your family, and your coworkers your top priority.
