01 May 2020 – Certain businesses allowed to reopen under strict safety guidelines

Type of Intervention: Advisory, Specific Action
Sectors Involved: Finance/Economy, Private Sector and Businesses
Intervention Categories: Social and physical distancing measures; Reopening offices, businesses, institutions, and operations
Level of Jurisdiction: Ontario
Lead People/Agency: Premier (Doug Ford), Minister of Finance (Rod Phillips), Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade (Vic Fedeli), and Deputy Premier and Minister of Health (Christine Elliott)

Overview: The Ontario government is allowing certain businesses and workplaces to reopen, if they maintain strict compliance with public health and safety measures. Those eligible to reopen as of May 4th at 12:01 am include garden centres and nurseries with curbside pick up and delivery services, lawn care and landscaping, essential construction projects, automatic and self-serve car washes, and auto dealerships. Golf courses and marinas may prepare for their upcoming seasons, but may not be open to the public.
Full details here: https://news.ontario.ca/opo/en/2020/05/certain-businesses-allowed-to-reopen-under-strict-safety-guidelines.html

Type of Justification: Advice of INTERNAL government advisory committee or group
Source of Evidence or Justification: Sub-national, Chief Medical Officer of Health, Ontario health and safety associations
Evidence/Justification: The Chief Medical Officer of Health has provided general recommendations on how the openings of businesses and some workplaces could occur safely. Sector-specific measures have been developed by health experts and Ontario’s health and safety associations to help workplaces reopen safely.