This blog marks our 100^th since the COVID-19 pandemic was declared in March 2020.  What began as our quarantine project—reviewing and posting countless city and county face covering and stay-at-home orders to help our clients navigate the complex web of requirements—has somehow morphed into a series of articles about the legal, practical and ethical ramifications of operating a business or just surviving through a modern-day pandemic.

Looking back over the last 100 blogs, it is clear life has changed dramatically since our first blog. When the COVID pandemic was in its viral infancy, determining what work was considered an essential business, whether masks were required, what business would be shut down and what branch of government set the policy to follow were all priorities for individuals and companies seeking guidance.

Early on, many worried about being exposed to the virus, about having a job, or whether the economy would collapse, taking private industry along for the ride. Pay cuts, furloughs, reductions in workforce and shuttered businesses became an early and in some instances long-term part of the COVID-19 landscape.  The terms “remote learning” and “remote working” became part of our vocabulary.

Employers worried about whether their businesses were “essential” on a county-by-county basis.  The City of Austin said construction was not essential, but Collin County said every business was essential.  For business deemed essential in county, but not in an adjoining one, questions quickly arose about whether employees could cross county lines from a more restrictive county to a less restrictive county for work without being arrested for violating the stay-at-home orders.  Travel papers became a thing.

Consumers had to make significant adjustments, as well.  Remember the empty store shelves and runs on water, paper towels and toilet paper?  How close was too close to stand next to a total stranger?  How many times do you have to wash your groceries before unbagging them?  And of course, where could you buy the coveted hand sanitizer with greater than 65% alcohol content and Clorox wipes?

The construction industry was much more fortunate in some regards. After much initial confusion, Governor Abbott issued an Executive Order clarifying that construction was an essential business, allowing projects to continue.  The construction industry quickly pivoted as businesses included, as part of workplace safety, social distancing rules, individual temperature readings, washing hand procedures and mask protocols. Many of those protocols remain in effect and, given their effectiveness in addressing not just COVID-19, but other virus-related illnesses, may have staying power.

Courts also adjusted, albeit not as quickly or nimbly as the construction industry.  In person hearings and jury trials all but stopped. However, Zoom docket calls and Zoom hearings quickly filled the void, even if it meant sharing Zoom accounts with your much tech-savvier children and having the explain the Court that, “I am not a cat!”  Arbitration proved much more resilient than court system, with final evidentiary hearings (trials) proceeding via Zoom, Teams, or any number of videoconferencing apps.

With all the changes that have occurred, what are some that are likely to become permanent?

1.    The videoconference. Zoom, Teams, WebEx, etc., love them or leave them, are not going anywhere anytime soon. Although personal interaction in the construction industry will never go away completely and may return to being the norm, meetings about projects with significant cost or time constraints may be forever handled via videoconference.

2.    Working remotely. Many employees have expressed an interest in working remotely even after the physical workplace reopens. Some employers, looking to retain talented employees and reduce overhead associated with long-term lease obligations, are encouraging employees to continue working remotely indefinitely.

3.   COVID clauses in contracts and insurance. Future generations may look back quaintly and snicker at construction contracts from the viral 20s that include force majeure provisions specifically identifying COVID-19 or pandemics. Or at insurance policies with COVID-19 exclusionary endorsements.  But until the pandemic is quelled in all parts of the world and supply chains return to normal, these types of provisions are likely to endure.

We hope our blogs have made your journey over the past 12 months a little easier and that you continue the journey with us as we work towards our 200^th blog!

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