“Delicate Business Decisions:” A New Health Order Requires Vaccine Status for Santa Clara Workers

San Jose, CA (KGO)-Santa Clara County is moving away from working from home. County Public Health Officer Dr. Sarah Cody has announced that safety measures are no longer needed as the area is “a very different and much safer place”.

At a press conference on Tuesday, she noted high immunization rates and low COVID-19 cases in the county.

“That’s why I’m withdrawing the October risk reduction order,” Dr. Cody announced. “And I’m replacing it with a very simple order, and this order does only three things.”

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In the list of new requirements coming into effect on Wednesday, employers need to see if their employees are vaccinated.

Rebecca Lapena lives and works in the county. She told ABC7News that this particular rule provides some comfort as she is preparing to return to the office.

“But I’m still worried about vulnerable people at work,” she shared. “People you know who cannot get the vaccine for religious reasons or maybe for medical purposes.”

As a result, the Silicon Valley Leadership Group (SLVG) explained that there are many legal issues.

“We have already been contacted by many of the 350 member companies and have questions about how to actually comply with the new health orders,” Peter Leroe-Munoz told ABC7 News.

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He is a general counselor as well as an SVP of SLVG’s technology policy and innovation.

“This is a major legal issue as to whether an employer can request vaccination. Currently, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission provides guidance on whether an employer can request COVID vaccination. “He elaborated. “And the answer is yes, with a religious objection or disability exemption.”

He explains that private sectors have the legal discretion to set a significant portion of the standards not only for employees, but also for patrons, customers, or the general public who actually come to their workplaces. did.

“This new health order will come into effect tomorrow Wednesday, and companies have a very short time to see if their employees are actually vaccinated,” continued Leroe-Munoz. “So it’s certainly a period of time when employers and businesses here in Santa Clara County have to act very quickly while trying to understand exactly what compliance requirements are.”

“In addition, they will have to make very delicate business decisions regarding office culture,” he added.

Leroe-Munoz said this also includes setting expectations for customer and visitor behavior.

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In downtown San Jose, Haberdasher SJ owner Cache Bouren has already planned to serve patrons.

“I’m here’Captain Safety’recently,” Boren joked. “We request that all guests entering after June 15th be presented with evidence of vaccination.”

With the transition to the less restrictive yellow layer, the bar can be opened with 25% capacity, or 100 people. However, Bouren has postponed indoor operations until the planned reopening date of the state.

“That capacity doesn’t really affect my decision on whether to actually resume,” he shared with ABC7 News. “I want to restart when it’s as safe as possible,” he said.

Bouren explained that Haberdasher SJ last served indoor patrons on Sunday, March 15th.

“We had a few parties that closed for some reason, we hadn’t yet wondered what was going on,” he said.

Vaccine tracker: The CA’s efforts when it is possible to receive the coronavirus vaccine are as follows.

“We will wait for June 15th, most of which is the health and well-being of our staff,” Bohren said.

He said he and his employees would take the time to mentally coordinate and the staff would again be ready to serve and prepare cocktails in front of guests.

“In addition, not everyone has finished the second vaccination. It’s the second vaccination,” Bouren said.

He also requires employees to be vaccinated before returning to work.

“Personally, my staff, who didn’t know the legality, blatantly demanded that all employees be vaccinated with the COVID vaccine,” he told ABC7 News. “I did it because I was thinking of their own health. The fact that they are exposed to so many people in our work, especially when they get inside, I tell them all I wanted to get vaccinated. “

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The new health order also requires businesses to define safety rules for unvaccinated people. We will also continue to request workplace and school reports if there are cases of COVID.

Lapena shared her thoughts on the new health order as it relates to her working days.

“I’m listening to good and bad news. Good news. You have the opportunity to actually meet new teams, see them in the real world, actually look at your desk and feel some kind of normality. “She shared. “On the other hand, the downside is that I’m used to it. Now I love working from home. Saving gas saves me a lot of productivity. The reduction in car insurance claims is due to the reduction. I don’t drive much, so I see pros and cons on both sides. “

She explained that she was completely vaccinated, but “I’m nervous because there are still many unclear points about this disease. Of course, I can’t control others. I’m myself. I can only worry about that, so I definitely feel a little worried and went back and distanced. “

Leroe-Munoz understands that anxiety arises as the county migrates.

“As we move, there will probably be some uncertainty or a bit of anxiety on the part of some employers regarding seeking information from their own employees,” he said. Said. “And there may be very well anxiety on the part of employees who feel they are being asked for information that may be sensitive to them.”

“So I think it will be a period of transition, it will take some time,” he continued. “What I say is that Silicon Valley has always been very flexible and has always pivoted faster than people think.”

He said he hopes this transition will be a little faster than some people fear.

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