EXECUTIVE ORDER 142 – GOVERNOR BEGINS TO OPEN NEW JERSEY NON-ESSENTIAL CONSTRUCTION, NON-ESSENTIAL RETAIL STORES AND GATHERINGS BY VEHICLE

By Robert C. Griffin, Esq. May 18, 2020 Posted in Firm News Share

The Governor for the State of New Jersey has issued another Executive Order. We all are hoping that this pandemic will come to an end soon. This Executive Order is a step toward reopening. Executive Order 142 authorizes the reopening of some non-essential businesses or operations, with the restrictions set forth in the Order.

The following is set forth in the Order:

• Construction Projects not designated as essential in Executive Order 122 are permitted to resume, subject to the conditions in the Order (which are explained below).
• All businesses engaged in construction (essential or non-essential) must abide by the following restrictions: 
  1. Prohibit non-essential visitors from entering work sites;
  2. Engage in social distancing when picking up or dropping off equipment;
  3. Limit worksite meetings, inductions and work groups to fewer than 10 individuals;
  4. Require individuals to maintain six feet apart wherever possible;
  5. Stagger work start and stop times to limit individuals entering/leaving;
  6. Identify congested and “high-risk areas” and limit the number of people;
  7. Stagger lunch breaks and work times where practicable;
  8. Require workers to wear cloth face coverings, except where it would inhibit health or the individual is under two years of age;
  9. Require infection control practices;
  10. Limit sharing of tools;
  11. Where running water is not available, provide portable hand-washing stations with soap or alcohol-based hand sanitizers.
  12. Require frequent sanitation of high-touch areas;
  13. When the worksite is an occupied residence, require workers to sanitize work areas and keep distance of six feet from occupants;
  14. Place conspicuous signage at entrances and throughout the worksite detailing the above mandates.
• Gatherings are allowed, so long as the following restrictions are adhered to:
  1. Attendees participating in the gathering must arrive in a vehicle and the must remain in that vehicle during the entire gathering;
  2. Eachattendee’s vehicle must remain entirely closed at all times, unless:
     1. The vehicle is more than six feet from any other vehicle, or individual;
     2. A law enforcement officer, appropriate public official or private security guard asks any attendee to open the vehicle.

• Anyone organizing or maintaining the gathering may be outside a vehicle, so long as the individual wears a mask and follows all other applicable Executive Orders;

1. To the extent that a gathering required pre-payment or seeks donations of any kind, contactless options for pre-payment or donation, such as online or by telephone must be offered wherever feasible.

• If a recreational and entertainment event adheres to the rules in the foregoing paragraph, the event is allowed.
• If a gathering does not adhere to the requirements in the paragraph above, it is still allowed I the gathering is of 10 or fewer persons.
• Non-essential retail businesses are permitted to reopen to the public, so long as the following restrictions are adhered to:
  1. The business conducted must be curbside pickup;
  2. In-store operations are limited to those employees responsible for the operation of curbside pickup;
  3. Further requirements explain the exact method of curbside pickup.
• Retail employers must follow the following restrictions:
  1. Require infection control practices;
  2. Provide employees breaktime for handwashing;
  3. Provide sanitation materials;
  4. Require frequent sanitation of high-touch areas;
  5. Require workers to wear cloth face coverings and gloved when interacting with other workers or customers and require workers to wear gloves when in contact with customers or goods.

These restrictions are a step in the right direction. We hope that further Executive Orders come soon to open the State to its full function, while maintaining a safe environment for everyone. If you have any questions on re-opening, please contact our office.

The information in this Client Alert is provided solely for information purposes. It should not be construed as legal advice on any specific matter and is not intended to create an attorney-client relationship. The information provided herein may not be applicable in all situations and should not be acted upon without specific legal advice based upon particular circumstances.  Each legal matter is unique, and prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

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