On April 11th, Governor Phil Murphy signed Executive Order No. 125, requiring specific policies on restaurants that have remained open for takeout orders. The order also imposes additional mitigation requirements on NJ TRANSIT and all private carriers to limit the spread of COVID-19.This Order will take effect beginning at 8:00 p.m. on Monday, April 13.

Restaurants, cafeterias, food courts, bars, etc. that are still permitted to operate must adopt additional policies to follow public health guidelines regarding social distancing, cleaning, sanitizing, and hygiene practices. These include:

• Limit occupancy at 10% of the stated maximum capacity, wherever feasible, at one time;
• Ensure six feet of distance between workers and customers, except at the moment of payment and/or exchange of goods;
• Require infection control practices, such as regular hand washing, coughing and sneezing etiquette, and proper tissue usage and disposal;
• Provide employees break time for repeated handwashing throughout the workday;
• Arrange for contactless pay, pickup, and/or delivery options wherever feasible;
• Provide sanitization materials, such as hand sanitizer and sanitizing wipes, to staff;
• Require frequent sanitization of high-touch areas like credit card machines, keypads, and counters;
• Place conspicuous signage at entrances and throughout the food business, if applicable, alerting staff and customers to the required six feet of physical distance;
• Require workers to wear cloth face coverings and gloves while on the premises, except where doing so would inhibit that worker’s health, and require workers to wear gloves when in contact with customers or goods. Businesses must provide, at their expense, such face coverings and gloves for their employees. Customers that enter the food business will similarly be required to wear cloth face coverings, except where doing so would inhibit that individual’s health or where the individual is under the age of two, but will not be required to wear such covering when receiving a delivery or when picking up goods outside of the food business. If a worker or customer refuses to wear a cloth face covering for non-medical reasons and if such covering cannot be provided to the individual by the food business at the point of entry, then the food business must decline entry to the individual. Such food business should, however, arrange for delivery, curbside pick-up or alternative arrangements wherever possible. Nothing in the stated policy should prevent workers or customers from wearing a surgical-grade mask or other more protective face covering if the individual is already in possession of such equipment, or if the business is otherwise required to provide such worker with more protective equipment due to the nature of the work involved. Where an individual declines to wear a face covering inside the food business due to a medical condition that inhibits such usage, neither the food business nor its staff shall require the individual to produce medical documentation verifying the stated condition.

To read Executive Order No. 125, click here.

To read the Governor's press release, click here.

For more information, please contact Hilary Beckett, Manager, Government Affairs at hbeckett@chambersnj.com