Over the past several weeks, some local governments around the globe have begun slowly to initiate progressive measures to revise and even rescind COVID-19 emergency legislation, orders and lockdowns. These governments now are grappling with workplace-specific issues.  As such, employers must determine how to maintain their duty of care to all employees and to protect employees’ health and safety, while safeguarding employees’ privacy.

This inevitable and inherent tension underlies the discussion surrounding several workplace issues, including COVID-19 testing, taking temperatures, requiring face coverings and disclosing COVID-19 exposure in employee return to work questionnaires. The below analysis highlights some general themes and practices before providing some country-specific information.  Note, however, that this is intended as a high-level overview of the applicable legal issues in certain jurisdictions, and this country-specific information likely is not sufficiently comprehensive or exhaustive to address fact-intensive inquiries and concerns.