Skip to Main Content

Health and Safety

Safety Protocols & Requirements   

 

Physical distancing will be removed in its entirety, with narrow exceptions for non-fully vaccinated employees and outbreak situations at the worksite.

If a non-fully vaccinated employee requests a respirator for voluntary use, the employer needs to ensure that the employee is provided with a respirator of the correct size.

Classroom and laboratory occupancies are expected to be at 75-100% of existing room capacity during the fall. Approximately 20% of courses, especially the larger ones, are anticipated to be taught remotely, although departments may consider returning large lectures to in-person format if instructional staff and classrooms can be made available.
As more and more of the state and county begins to open up we are eager to go out and get back to normal. However, it is understandable that for some individuals the COVID-19 vaccine may have been developed “too quickly,” or may have legitimate questions and concerns, or may have a hard time deciphering from distorted information online. We highly encourage you to bring up your questions and concerns to your health care provider and/or seek out trusted resources online to better answer your questions.

• CDC COVID-19 Vaccine Information
• Mayo Clinic COVID-19 Vaccine Information
• COVID-19 Vaccines at UCLA
•  COVID-19 Vaccine Hub for UCLA Students

Department Resumption of On-Site Activities Plans are no longer required to be submitted to EH&S prior to ramping up in-person activities, although departments are still encouraged to develop their own resumption and mitigation plans following this Campus Ramp-Up Planning Guide. Departments should, however, complete the Departmental Ramp-Up FormEnvironmental Health & Safety is available to assist departments with their planning to reduce the risk of COVID-19 transmission and comply with appropriate infection control protocols. Please note that requests for any physical modifications or equipment installations should be submitted to Facilities Management as soon as possible since there could be a high demand.  

•  Departmental Ramp-Up Form

At UCLA, all individuals, whether fully vaccinated or not, will be required to wear face masks in all public indoor spaces. Additional guidance is as follows: 

Personal Indoor Spaces

Face masks are being recommended while in personal living environments and closed-door offices when in the presence of people from outside of one’s household. 

Eating Indoors

When eating indoors, masks may be removed just prior to eating and must be worn again as soon as individuals are finished eating. 

Outdoor Spaces

Although the current mandate does not include an outdoor masking requirement, it is still recommended, especially for unvaccinated individuals, to wear a mask when outside in large groups. 

Summer Youth Camps 

Face masks are also required for those working and participating in summer youth camp activities — both indoors and outdoors — except when eating, in which case masks may be removed as long as physical distancing is maintained.  

Unvaccinated employees must be provided with NIOSH-certified respirator masks upon request, if they are working indoors or in a vehicle with others. Physical distancing is no longer required. 

There are many functions on the UCLA campus that remain open to visitors, such as the Luskin Conference Center, medical center, museums, and the botanical gardens, however, other spaces, like the libraries, and general office spaces remain closed to the general public at this time. Conferences, colloquia and other non-instructional meetings taking place on campus that include visitors are still encouraged to be held online, but are permitted with prior approval from EH&S.

Events with visitors held on campus will be following LACDPH guidelines which include the following as of July 12, 2021: 

•  Businesses that host indoor events with more than 5,000 attendees or outdoor events with more than 10,000 attendees must follow State Guidance for Mega Events. 

•  For outdoor events with more than 200 people, unvaccinated attendees should wear masks if they are less than six feet away from others. At outdoor events that are over 1,000 people, if vaccination verification is not possible, all attendees should wear face masks 

•  Establish procedures to prevent crowding among persons waiting to enter or exit an event. 

The University of California Office of the President (UCOP) has issued a university wide policy requiring all UC students, trainees, personnel and all others who work, live and/or learn in any UC locations or otherwise participate in person in university programs to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 at least 14 days prior to the first day of instruction for the fall term. This is subject to certain medical exemptions and accommodations based on disability or religious belief, and deferrals are available for those who are pregnant. This means UCLA faculty, staff and students working, living and/or learning on UCLA property will need to be fully vaccinated by September 9. Students in semester programs with various start dates will need to be in compliance 14 days prior to the start of their respective first day of instruction. Faculty and staff associated with those schools will need to be in compliance 14 days prior to the earliest of the start dates. Adoption of this policy follows the announcement of a draft policy and community review process earlier this spring. 

•  UCLA Procedures for Compliance and Enforcement of COVID-19 Public Health Mitigation Measures
  UC Issues Final COVID-19 Vaccination Policy
  How to Request a COVID-19 Vaccine Exception
•  COVID-19 Related Accommodation Or Workplace Adjustment Information

Employees and students should share issues of non-compliance with supervisors, managers, residential advisers, department administrators, instructional employees, medical professionals, Whistleblower Hotline, or other responsible parties for further action consistent with the student code of conduct, employee policies, and rules for patients and visitors. Remember to be empathetic and practice True Bruin values when engaging with one another about compliance protocols. Kindness helps to promote good community behavior.

•  UCLA Procedures for Compliance and Enforcement of COVID-19 Public Health Mitigation Measures
•  UCLA Whistleblower Hotline Online

Daily electronic symptom monitoring will continue to be required regardless of vaccination status. Routine surveillance testing will continue for unvaccinated on-site employees and students, except those who are fully vaccinated. Testing has shifted from nasal swabs with clinical observers to self-service oral swab kits that will be distributed in vending machines/drop-off sites throughout campus.

•  UCLA COVID-19 Community Screening Protocol
•  UCLA COVID-19 Symptom Monitoring System
•  UCLA COVID-19 Self-Test Options on Campus