Reopening Businesses Face State Virus Workplace-Safety Orders

Governors’ offices and state agencies are rolling out a patchwork of workplace-safety orders for employers as they reopen businesses amid the coronavirus pandemic—providing potentially helpful guidance but also another layer of uncertainty over liability risk.

In Texas, for example, restaurants, retailers, and movie theaters are allowed to reopen starting Friday but must restrict their capacity to 25% of their building occupancy limit. In Pennsylvania, where only “life sustaining businesses” are allowed to operate for now, a state health department order spells out safety protocols such as face coverings and temperature checks for employees. Orders and guidance have been issued for ...