On July 20, through Government Agreement 179-2022, the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare established specific mandatory measures in the workplace to prevent COVID-19 infections, as follows.
Employer Obligations:
- Ensure social distancing under the Health Alerts and Health Provisions System of the Ministry of Public Health and Social Assistance or use physical barriers.
- Clean work areas, tools, materials, and surfaces, providing adequate supplies for disinfection.
- Provide liquid or gel alcohol and soap for hand washing.
- Provide masks or facial covering when appropriate.
- Promote information and dissemination campaigns to prevent the spread of SARS COV-2 and disseminate health provisions.
- Schedule and allow OHS monitors to train workers on strategies to minimize the spread of SARS COV-2.
- Have a PPRL or a PSSO in the work centers (compliance with the OHS Regulation).
Employer Prohibitions:
- Forcing a worker to provide services without protection measures to minimize SARS COV-2.
- Suspend workers (asymptomatic or symptomatic) from the workplace without following the health measures for COVID-19.
Worker obligations:
- Comply with the health regulations issued by the Ministry of Public Health and Social Assistance and/or the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare.
Worker Prohibitions:
- Execute acts to prevent compliance with OHS measures at work.
- Damaging or destroying personal protective equipment or refusing to use it.
- Damage, destroy, hide or remove the posters created to promote the prevention and control of SARS COV-2 contagion.
- Carrying out work without personal protective equipment
Sanctions:
- In case of non-compliance, the sanctions include, in the case of the employer, a fine between 8 and 16 monthly minimum wages in force for non-agricultural activities (between Q17,755.44 and Q35,510.88 or $2,291.02 and $4,582.05).
- In the case of a worker, the fine will be between 4 and 8 minimum daily wages for non-agricultural activities.