On March 19, 2021, the Ontario government announced that it would revise the province’s COVID-19 Response Framework (the “Framework”) to adjust dining capacity limits and implement new safety measures for food and drink establishments within public health regions at the Lockdown (Grey), Control (Red), and Orange (Restrict) levels of the Framework. These changes came into effect on March 20, 2021 at 12:01 am.
Outdoor Dining Allowed
Outdoor dining is now permitted for food and drink establishments at all levels of the Framework, including Lockdown (Grey), subject to physical distancing rules and a number of other public health and workplace safety requirements.
Previously, establishments located in regions at the Lockdown (Grey) level were only permitted to open for the purpose of providing take-out, drive-through, or delivery service. Indoor dining continues to remain prohibited at this level.
Increased Occupancy Limits
For regions at the Restrict (Orange) and Control (Red) levels of the Framework, under which restaurants have been allowed to open for indoor dining since the end of the province-wide shutdown, occupancy limits for indoor dining have been adjusted and are based on a scalable calculation that allows for up to approximately 50% of the indoor dining area to be publicly accessible, subject to physical distancing rules and maximum occupancy limits. The maximum occupancy limit for indoor dining is up to 50 patrons at the Control (Red) level and up to 100 patrons at the Restrict (Orange) level. Previously, the maximum occupancy limits for indoor dining at establishments within the Control (Red) and Restrict (Orange) levels were 10 patrons and 50 patrons, respectively.
Strengthened Public Health and Safety Measures
The government has also strengthened public health and safety requirements for indoor and outdoor dining at the Lockdown (Grey), Control (Red), and Orange (Restrict) levels. These requirements include, but are not limited to:
- limiting tables for indoor dining to members of the same household, with exemptions for patrons who live alone and caregivers;
- limiting tables for outdoor dining in Lockdown (Grey) to members of the same household, with exemptions for patrons who live alone and caregivers; and
- posting a sign at the establishment in a location visible to the public that states its permitted total occupancy.
At all levels of the Framework, operators of food and drink establishments continue to be subject to requirements with respect to:
- screening of patrons;
- use of personal protective equipment and face coverings (except when eating or drinking);
- the prohibition of buffet style service;
- management of line-ups outside of venues;
- physical distancing between tables; and
- creating safety plans and making them available upon request.
Takeaways
In light of the changes discussed above, employers operating food and drink establishments should review their workplace health and safety protocols to ensure that they are operating safely and meeting all local and sector-specific requirements.
Further, these revisions to the Framework illustrate how quickly COVID-19 related requirements can change; in this case, food and drink establishments had less than 24 hours’ notice before the relevant changes came into effect. Accordingly, all employers would be well advised to designate an individual to continually monitor for changes to COVID-19 related health and safety requirements that may impact their business or organization.
As always, we will continue tracking COVID-19 related measures affecting employers and will post further updates as they become available to keep you In the Know.
This blog is provided as an information service and summary of workplace legal issues.
This information is not intended as legal advice.