Small Business Restart Plan for Reopening your Business

Date: June 12, 2020

COVID-19 preparedness and response plan required to reopen

As more businesses are being allowed to reopen under Governor Whitmer’s Executive Orders, small business owners need to be aware that there are a multitude of requirements and restrictions that must be followed to avoid being in violation of executive orders or other regulations regarding COVID-19 precautions. Some of these requirements are conditions that must be met in dealing with customers and the public, and other requirements apply specifically to how employees are to be trained and managed. In addition to state and federal requirements, there may be local requirements as well.

All businesses are required under EO 2020-114 to develop a COVID-19 preparedness and response plan consistent with recommendations for preparing workplaces as developed by the federal Occupational Health and Safety Administration. Plans must be available to employees and the public by June 1, or within two weeks of reopening, whichever is later, in some physical or digital format.

The Michigan Occupational Health and Safety Administration (MIOSHA) and Department of Labor and Economic Opportunity (LEO) have created a COVID Workplace Safety website that includes information on required workplace safety procedures before a business can reopen and has the requirements of the plan spelled out in detail.

NFIB has a Michigan COVID-19 Preparedness Plan Template for Medium and Low Risk Workers to assist small business owners in meeting the requirement for a written COVID-19 Preparedness and Response Plan. While the information provided is intended to be accurate and helpful, it should not be considered legal advice. NFIB and the NFIB Small Business Legal Center cannot be held responsible for any errors or omissions. It is the employer’s responsibility to develop a plan that meets all federal, state, and local requirements. The links below will allow you to download a Word version of the plan that can be tailored to your business. Required and useful posters can also be downloaded and printed.

MI Sample Preparedness Plan

2020 Michigan COVID-19 Posters

On June 1, Governor Whitmer lifted the Stay at Home Order and moved the rest of the state to “Phase 4” under her “Michigan Safe Start” reopening plan.  See Executive Order 2020-110  for more details.

On Friday, June 5, Whitmer moved Regions 6 and 8 – the Upper Peninsula and 17 counties in the northern Lower Peninsula – to Phase 5 of her restart plan on June 10. The move will allow movie theaters and gyms to reopen in those areas with restrictions. On June 15 personal services covering hair, massages and nails will reopen statewide. The regions moving to Phase 5 can begin having indoor social gatherings and organized events of up to 50 people. Outdoor gatherings of up to 250 people can take place. All such gatherings can take place with social distancing. Currently, the limits are 10 indoors and 100 outdoors. Further, outdoor performance and sporting venues will be open with a capacity limit of 500. Whitmer said that she anticipates moving the entire state to Phase 5 in the coming weeks. See Executive Order 2020-115  for more details. You can find the re-opening phases and regions here.

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