A 22-page industry white paper developed by the Industry-Wide Labor-Management Safety Committee Task Force establishing protocols for a safe return to work “in an environment that minimizes the risk of contracting or spreading COVID-19″ was submitted to the governors of Los Angeles and New York on Monday and will be shared with other governors and government officials.

Its recommendations “set forth the consensus of the Task Force and outline guidance regarding protective measures to be used, including regular screening, diagnostic testing, use of personal protective equipment, cleaning and disinfecting work sites, and appropriate response should an employee contract COVID-19 or be exposed to it.”.

“We thank all of the organizations whose member representatives or appointees contributed to the work of the Industry-Wide Labor-Management Safety Committee Task Force and are especially grateful to SAG-AFTRA National Executive Director David White, Chief Operating Officer and General Counsel Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, and National Director of Stunt and Safety Cedric Jackson for guiding SAG-AFTRA’s contributions to the Task Force and document.”.

“First, at the request of the Governors of New York and California, we have been working with an Industry-Wide Labor-Management Safety Committee Task Force to develop the blueprint for production to resume.

This Task Force also consists of representatives from the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE), the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA), as well as the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) and other producer representatives.

For over a month, the Task Force has been working to develop an Industry White Paper with high level guidelines to enable film and television production to resume.

It addresses areas including set hygiene, disinfection and maintenance, catering, mandatory employment of Covid-19 Compliance Officer(s), symptom screening, physical distancing, paid leave policies and Covid-19 training, among other critically important topics necessary for the safe resumption of production.

“While the Industry White Paper provides a solid foundation for the appropriate state agencies to examine the resumption of production, and calls for mandatory testing – it also expressly states that with respect to mandatory testing protocols and other key areas such as personal protective equipment (PPE), department-specific operational protocols and project-specific workflows, there will be further discussions between the Producers and the Unions and Guilds.

• Jeffrey Shaman, PhD, Professor of Environmental Health Sciences in the International Research Institute for Climate and Society/Earth Institute at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Health – who modeled various testing protocols for the Committee.

“For this reason, the Committee is recommending that first, every member of the cast and crew be tested for active Covid-19 infection before their first day of work to ensure they are not shedding the virus.

Cast and crew members should then be subject to regular testing protocols during the course of their work on the production.

“In recognition that performers are among the most vulnerable because they cannot wear PPE when cameras are rolling, and frequently will not be able to engage in physical distancing, there must be higher testing frequency for them and those with whom they come into close contact.

On the other hand, individuals who work in areas like the production office – where physical distancing and PPE can be utilized – do not need to be tested as frequently.

In order to ensure these different sections of the production environment are tightly controlled, the Committee recommends the implementation of a specialized “Zone” system, which sets out the environments and barriers within which those on set can flow based on proximity to cast, level of testing, PPE and the extent to which physical distancing can be observed in the performance of their work.

Other detailed protocols laid out in the Committee’s recommendations include procedures around strict physical distancing and the use of medically approved, employer-provided PPE.