City of Toronto mandates Toronto employers to notify Public Health of COVID-19 cases at the workplace, amongst other directives

January 7, 2021

On January 4, 2021, the Medical Officer of Health for Toronto issued a Letter of Instruction to all employers in the City of Toronto that are open under the Reopening Ontario (A Flexible Response to COVID-19) Act. The Letter requires businesses to take additional measures to reduce the spread of COVID-19.

One of the more notable requirements in the Letter is for an employer to notify Toronto Public Health as soon as it becomes aware of two or more people who have tested positive for COVID-19 within a 14-day span in connection with its workplace premises. In that case, the employer must:

Provide contact information for a designated contact person at the workplace premise and ensure that person is readily available to communicate with Toronto Public Health and implement any additional measures immediately as required by Toronto Public Health;
Ensure that accurate and updated contact information for all workers is available to be produced to Toronto Public Health within 24 hours of request in support of case management and contact tracing requirements for COVID-19;
Notify the Ontario Ministry of Labour, Training, and Skills Development and/or other relevant government authorities; and
Cooperate with infection prevention and control personnel from Toronto Public Health including allowing entry into the workplace premise for inspection and to support enhanced infection prevention and control measures and recommendations.

The Letter also includes various infection prevention measures that employers must adhere to, including:

Ensuring that hand sanitizer and hand-washing facilities are provided in work and rest areas;
Implementing “rigorous and frequent” cleaning in high-touch and public areas;
Conducting a regular review of the workplace’s HVAC systems (though the Letter does not specify what constitutes “regular” review);
Minimizing the instances of more than one person in a vehicle for driving associated with work;
Ensuring physical distancing at the workplace and installing one-way walkways; and
Implementing physical barriers where physical distancing is not possible.

Finally, the Letter directs employers to ensure that all employees are aware of income replacement and workplace-related benefits they are entitled to in the event they have to isolate or be tested for COVID-19.

It is imperative that all applicable Toronto employers comply with these directives since they have a legal obligation to keep workers and workplaces safe. It remains to be seen if other cities and municipalities within the province will implement similar instructions.