By Brice Wallace
A “Stay Safe to Stay Open” campaign established by the Salt Lake Chamber is designed to assure customers that a particular business is following state COVID-19 guidelines.
The chamber has invited businesses to take a pledge that they will follow best practices to protect employees and customers. Businesses that take the pledge will receive a “seal of approval” and other collateral to display in their commercial locations and be included in an online searchable database.
“In recent days, we have been reminded of the need to focus on the health imperative when it comes to coronavirus,” said Derek Miller, president and CEO of the Salt Lake Chamber and Downtown Alliance. “Along with that imperative is the need to appropriately support economic engagement and job creation. ‘Stay Safe to Stay Open’ seeks to balance these imperatives in a way that supports businesses as they support their customers, allowing them to pledge that they are complying with guidelines set out by the Utah Department of Health and contained in the ‘Utah Leads Together’ plan.”
Participating businesses pledge their teams will follow state health guidelines and to conduct temperature checks before work and stay home when sick; wash hands frequently and avoid touching face and eyes; practice physical distancing, including wearing face coverings in close common areas; learn about high-risk groups and help protect them; cover mouths when coughing or sneezing; clean high- touch surfaces frequently; and follow public health guidance as updated.
The campaign is a partnership between the Salt Lake Chamber and the Utah Department of Health, supported by government, business and community leaders.
“Combating this virus requires vigilance from all parts of our community,” said Jefferson Burton, acting executive director of the Utah Department of Health. “As important as it is for individuals to follow health guidance to protect themselves and their families, it is equally as important for the businesses they visit to provide an environment they can have confidence in. We applaud the Utah business community for their commitment to follow our health guidelines and give their customers confidence that they can engage safely.”
Among businesses participating are those in the Larry H. Miller Group of Companies.
“Our businesses are proud to commit to ‘Stay Safe to Stay Open,’” said Steve Starks, CEO of the group. “The safety and well-being of our employees and our customers is paramount. It is important to prioritize best practices in our places of business so that we can continue to serve our customers and provide opportunities for our employees.
“We not only want to comply, but we want to provide a level of comfort for our guests. The more businesses who take this pledge, the better our public health and the greater our ability to keep our economy going.”
To take the pledge, companies can go to stayopenutah.com to pledge to follow the safety guidelines, complete a short form so customers can find the business in the pledge database, and receive an email confirmation with instructions on how to obtain the signage that demonstrates the company has taken the pledge.
