As the Government eases COVID-19 restrictions and employees start to make a return to the workplace, all businesses in Queensland will have Workplace Health and Safety (WHS) obligations and responsibilities.
Employees can begin to return to the workplace if it suits both the employer and employee. There may need to be a change in work rosters to allow for appropriate physical distancing, including one person per four square metres and measures will be need to be implemented to keep workers safe and to stop the spread of COVID-19.
Measures include:
- Working from home where possible
- Implementing and promoting hygiene practices and cleaning
- Providing sufficient cleaning and disinfection supplies and equipment, or engage a suitable cleaning service.
- Using personal protective equipment (PPE) where necessary
- Managing psycho-social risks for workers
- Communicating, training and supervising workers on workplace measures to address COVID-19
High Risk Industries
Industries that the Chief Health Officer has identified as high risk of transmission will be required to implement further measures.
COVID Safe Training
Training will be made available for all industries and will be mandatory for high risk industries to complete within two weeks of re-opening. An online training program is currently being developed through TAFE Queensland and details will be provided on the COVID 19 website soon.
Click on the below link to register your interest and to be notified when training becomes available:
https://tafeqld.edu.au/covid-safe
COVID Safe Checklists
High risk industries will be required to complete a mandatory COVID Safe Checklist when re-opening a previously restricted activity. The Checklist must be followed, signed and displayed at their premises (it is not required to be submitted for approval).
What you need to do to safely re-open your business:
1. Check your business can re-open
- Check the Queensland Government’s COVID-19 website to confirm you can re-open your business and whether any specific restrictions apply.
- If your business has been closed, check the condition of equipment and facilities are fully functioning, such as gas, electricity, toilets, and hand-washing facilities. Ensure food and beverages stored at your business have not been contaminated or are now out of date.
- Ensure staff are trained in new requirements and ensure their food handling training is up to date.
- COVID Safe training will be made available. Government will develop free training for all industries and some industry bodies have developed bespoke training. COVID Safe training will be mandatory for high risk industries and must be undertaken within two weeks of re-opening.
2. Wellbeing of Workers
- Direct workers to stay at home if they are sick, and to go home immediately if they become unwell. Require them to be tested for COVID-19 if they have any symptoms of acute respiratory disease (cough, sore throat, shortness of breath) or a fever or history of fever. They must remain in isolation at home till they get the result and it is negative for COVID-19.
- Consider safety risks and manage these according to the appropriate hierarchy of controls i.e. elimination, substitute, isolation, administrative controls then personal protective equipment where required.
- Implement measures to maximise the distancing between workers to the extent it is safe and practical and minimise the time that workers are in close contact. Where it is practical and safe to do so, review tasks and processes that usually require close interaction and identify ways to modify these to increase social distancing between workers.
- Modify processes behind the counter (including in the kitchen) to limit workers having to be in close contact, as much as possible. For example:
– assign workers to specific workstations to minimise the need to go into other spaces,
– implement processes so front of house workers can collect food without needing to go into food preparation areas. - Postpone or cancel non-essential face-to-face gatherings, meetings and training and use video conferencing where practicable.
- Consult with workers on COVID-19 measures in the workplace and provide workers with adequate information and education, including changes to work tasks and practices and appropriate cleaning and disinfection practices at work.
- Put signs and posters up to remind workers and others of the risk of COVID-19.
3. Social Distancing
- Place signs at entry points to instruct customers not to enter the shop if they are unwell or have COVID19 symptoms. The sign should state that businesses have the right to refuse service and must insist that anyone with these symptoms leaves the premises.
- Limit walk-in appointments and client interaction at the counter through the use of online or phone bookings.
- If practicable set up separate exit and entry points and separate order and collection points to minimise contact.
- Implement measures to restrict numbers on the premises, including maintaining a maximum of 10 people at any one time (not including staff), or 20 people if you are in an outback region (as defined on the Queensland Government COVID website), and ensuring distance of 4 square metres per person.
- Ensure social distancing by placing floor or wall markings or signs to identify 1.5 metres distance between persons for queues and waiting areas.
- Place tables to ensure that persons seated at those tables are 1.5 metres apart and reduce the number of tables and seating capacity in line with public health directions.
- Consider using physical barriers where practical, such as plexiglass around counters involving high volume interactions with customers
- Remove waiting area seating or space seating at least 1.5 metres apart.
- Provide contactless payments or ordering and payment online or through ordering apps.
- Ensure menus are:
– laminated and sanitised after each use or
– use general non-contact signage to display your menu or
– have single use paper menus available. - For takeaway services place menus outside the venue and introduce online ordering wherever possible.
- Set up different areas for ordering and collection, and where practical, separate entry and exit paths.
- Where practical, restrict service to table service only to reduce the movement of patrons and the number of surfaces touched.
- Remove any serve yourself buffet style food service areas and communal water stations or condiments.
- Stagger seating times and manage the duration of sittings to control the flow of patrons.
4. Record Keeping
- Contact information must be kept for customers, workers and any contractors for a period of at least 28 days. This must include name, address and mobile phone number of a person at each table.
- Ensure records are used only for the purposes of tracing COVID-19 infections and are captured and stored confidentially and securely.
5. Hygiene and cleaning
- Instruct all workers to practise good hygiene by frequently cleaning their hands. Hand washing should take at least 20 to 30 seconds. Wash the whole of each hand, covering all areas with soap before washing with water. If hand washing is not practical, alcohol-based hand sanitiser containing at least 60% ethanol or 70% iso-propanol is recommended.
- Provide hand washing facilities for customers and patrons including clean running water, liquid soap, paper towels. If hand washing facilities are not readily available, provide an appropriate alcohol-based hand sanitiser.
- Non-disposable crockery/cutlery/glassware is permitted only when cleared after each course and washed using a commercial grade dishwasher or glasswasher. Use disposable/recyclable cutlery/glass ware when available, or strict table clearing guidelines requiring gloves.
- Reduce the sharing of equipment and tools.
- Clean frequently touched areas and surfaces at least hourly with detergent or disinfectant (including shared equipment and tools, Eftpos equipment, tables, counter tops and sinks). Surfaces used by clients, such as tables, must also be cleaned between clients.
6. Deliveries, contractors and visitors attending the premises
- Where practical, direct delivery drivers or other contractors visiting the premises to minimise physical interaction with workers.
- Use electronic paperwork where practical. If a signature is required, discuss providing a confirmation email instead, or take a photo of the goods onsite as proof of delivery.
7. Review and monitor
- Regularly review your systems of work to ensure they are consistent with current directions and advice provided by health authorities.
- This checklist is a key part of your COVID Plan as outlined on the WorkSafe website.
- Publicly display this signed checklist as evidence that you are a COVID Safe business.
- Ensure you have a copy of this signed checklist which must be produced if requested from a relevant compliance/enforcement officer. This may include providing an electronic copy.
- Keep up to date and find additional guidance at www.covid19.qld.gov.au & www.worksafe.qld.gov.au
- Employees with a general work related complaint can call WHS Queensland on 1300 362 128 or their union.
- Business owners that would like to better understand their WHS duties regarding COVID-19 can call 1300 005 018 or their industry association.
- Customers who have concerns about whether a business is complying with this checklist can call 13QGOV (13 74 68).
What you need to do to safely re-open your business:
1. Check your business can re-open
- Check the Queensland Government’s COVID-19 website at www.covid19.qld.gov.au to confirm you can re-open your business and whether any specific restrictions apply.
- If your business has been closed, check the condition of equipment and facilities are fully functioning, such as gas, electricity, toilets, and hand-washing facilities. Ensure food and beverages stored at your business have not been contaminated or are now out of date.
- COVID Safe training will be made available. Government will develop free training for all industries and some industry bodies have developed bespoke training. COVID Safe training will be mandatory for high risk industries and must be undertaken within two weeks of re-opening.
2. Wellbeing of Workers
- Direct workers to stay at home if they are sick, and to go home immediately if they become unwell. Require them to be tested for COVID-19 if they have any symptoms of acute respiratory disease (cough, sore throat, shortness of breath) or a fever or history of fever. They must remain in isolation at home till they get the result and it is negative for COVID-19.
- Consider safety risks and manage these according to the appropriate hierarchy of controls i.e. elimination, substitute, isolation, administrative controls then personal protective equipment where required.
- Implement measures to maximise the distancing between workers to the extent it is safe and practical and minimise the time that workers are in close contact.
- Where it is practical and safe to do so, review tasks and processes that usually require close interaction and identify ways to modify these to increase social distancing between workers.
- Introduce work from home arrangements where workers are able to work from home, such as administrative work where no face to face contact is required.
- Modify processes behind the counter (including in break rooms) to limit workers having to be in close contact, as much as possible. Assign workers to specific workstations to minimise the need to go into other spaces and time breaks to ensure social distancing.
- Postpone, cancel or use electronic communications such as video conferencing for non-essential face-to-face gatherings, meetings and training.
- Consult with workers on COVID-19 measures in the workplace and provide workers with adequate information and education, including changes to work tasks and practices and appropriate cleaning and disinfection practices at work.
- Put signs and posters up to remind workers and others of the risk of COVID-19.
3. Social Distancing
- Place signs at entry points to instruct customers not to enter the shop if they are unwell or have COVID19 symptoms. The sign should state that businesses have the right to refuse service and must insist that anyone with these symptoms leaves the premises.
- If practicable set up separate exit and entry points to minimise contact.
- Implement measures to restrict numbers within the premises, including maintaining a maximum of 10 people at any one time, in addition to staff, and ensuring distance of 4 square metres per person.
- Ensure social distancing by placing floor or wall markings or signs to identify 1.5 metres distance between persons for queues and waiting areas.
- Consider using physical barriers where practical, such as plexiglass around serving counters.
- Remove waiting area seating or space seating at least 1.5 metres apart.
- Limit the use of cash transactions by encouraging customers to use tap and go, direct deposit or other contactless payment options.
- Limit walk-in appointments and client interaction at the counter through the use of online or phone bookings.
4. Record Keeping
- Contact information must be kept on all clients, workers and contractors, including name, address and mobile phone number for a period of at least 28 days.
- Ensure records are used only for the purposes of tracing COVID-19 infections and are captured and stored confidentially and securely.
5. Hygiene and cleaning
- Inform clients of expectations before they attend their appointment. This includes:
– staying at home if they feel unwell,
– they will need to provide their details for record keeping,
– washing their hands or using alcohol-based hand sanitiser upon arrival and
– requesting clients not to bring friends or family members to appointments. - Ensure clients and therapists are provided with hand washing facilities or appropriate alcohol-based hand sanitisers. Alcohol-based hand sanitiser containing at least 60% ethanol or 70% iso-propanol is recommended.
- Clients and staff must not be barefoot between treatments. Clients should use their own shoes or businesses may consider the use of single use disposable slippers.
- Where therapists were previously required to use masks and gloves to control for risks other than COVID-19 infection (e.g. dust exposures), they must continue to do so. For controlling the risk of COVID-19 infection, masks and gloves may be considered as part of a range of controls.
- Instruct therapists to practise good hygiene by frequently cleaning their hands. Hand washing should take at least 20 to 30 seconds. Wash the whole of each hand, covering all areas with soap before washing with water. If hand washing is not practical, alcohol-based hand sanitiser containing at least 60% ethanol or 70% iso-propanol is recommended.
- Reduce the sharing of equipment and tools, and remove books, magazines and iPads from waiting areas.
- Refrain from using product testers or samples on more than one client. Clients should refrain from any unnecessary contact with products they are not purchasing.
- Refrain from offering communal refreshments or water stations.
- Clean frequently touched areas and surfaces at least hourly with detergent or disinfectant (including shared equipment and tools, Eftpos equipment, tables, counter tops and sinks).
- Any surfaces used by clients must also be cleaned between clients. Ensure appropriate sterilisation of relevant equipment between clients. Ensure sufficient time is kept between appointments to allow for this.
6. Deliveries, contractors and visitors attending the premises
- Where practical, direct delivery drivers or other contractors visiting the premises to minimise physical interaction with workers.
- Use electronic paperwork where practical. If a signature is required, discuss providing a confirmation email instead, or take a photo of the goods onsite as proof of delivery.
7. Review and monitor
- Regularly review your systems of work to ensure they are consistent with current directions and advice provided by health authorities.
- This checklist is a key part of your COVID Plan as outlined on the WorkSafe website.
- Publicly display this signed checklist as evidence that you are a COVID Safe business.
- Ensure you have a copy of this signed checklist which must be produced if requested from a relevant compliance/enforcement officer. This may include providing an electronic copy.
- Keep up to date and find additional guidance at www.covid19.qld.gov.au & www.worksafe.qld.gov.au
- Employees with a general work related complaint can call WHS Queensland on 1300 362 128 or their union.
- Business owners that would like to better understand their WHS duties regarding COVID-19 can call 1300 005 018 or their industry association.
- Customers who have concerns about whether a business is complying with this checklist can call 13QGOV (13 74 68).
Click on the below link for more information and to download and print the COVID Safe Checklists:
