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Infrastructure 6 min read Published Updated Credibility 73/100

CISA updates essential critical infrastructure workforce guidance

CISA updated its critical infrastructure guidance for COVID-19, clarifying which workers are 'essential' during lockdowns. If your organization supports critical infrastructure, this guidance helps navigate stay-at-home orders.

Kodi C.

Editor & Research Lead

Reviewed for accuracy by Kodi C.

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High-level summary

On , CISA released Version 3.0 of the Guidance on the Essential Critical Infrastructure Workforce, updating the advisory list of workers who should maintain normal operations during COVID-19 restrictions. The guidance helps state and local governments, organizations, and individual workers understand which functions must continue to support public health, safety, and economic security during pandemic response.

The CISA guidance serves as an advisory framework rather than binding regulation:

  • Advisory nature: The list represents federal recommendations, not mandates. State and local authorities retain authority to implement stay-at-home orders and essential worker definitions.
  • Coordination tool: The guidance provides consistency across jurisdictions and helps organizations document worker necessity when handling varying local requirements.
  • Sector coverage: The list addresses all 16 critical infrastructure sectors defined in Presidential Policy Directive 21.
  • Workforce focus: The guidance identifies worker functions, not specific employers, recognizing that essential functions may be performed by various organizations.

Critical Infrastructure Sectors Covered

Version 3.0 addresses workforce needs across all critical infrastructure sectors:

  • Healthcare/Public Health: Medical providers, pharmaceutical manufacturers, laboratory workers, mental health professionals.
  • Energy: Electricity generation, petroleum refining, natural gas distribution, nuclear facility workers.
  • Water/Wastewater: Treatment plant operators, distribution system maintenance, water testing laboratories.
  • Food/Agriculture: Farming, food processing, grocery distribution, restaurant supply chains.
  • Transportation: Aviation, trucking, rail, maritime, public transit operations and maintenance.
  • Communications: Telecommunications networks, internet service providers, broadcast operations.
  • Information Technology: Data center operations, cybersecurity services, hardware maintenance.
  • Financial Services: Banks, payment processors, investment firms, insurance operations.

Operational Implementation

If you are affected, operationalize the guidance through structured processes:

  • Worker identification: Map organizational roles to CISA essential worker categories and document justifications for each position classified as essential.
  • Credential documentation: Provide workers with documentation (letters, badges, identification cards) confirming essential status for presentation at checkpoints or enforcement stops.
  • Travel authorization: Prepare travel letters for workers who must move between locations, particularly across jurisdictional boundaries with varying restrictions.
  • Contractor coordination: Extend essential worker documentation to contractors and vendors supporting critical operations.

Workforce Health and Safety

The guidance emphasizes protecting essential workers while maintaining operations:

  • Personal protective equipment: Ensure essential workers have appropriate PPE based on their roles and exposure risks.
  • Health monitoring: Implement health screening, temperature checks, or symptom monitoring appropriate to the operational environment.
  • Social distancing: Modify work practices to enable physical distancing where possible, including staggered shifts and workspace modifications.
  • Mental health support: Provide resources addressing stress, anxiety, and burnout affecting workers maintaining operations during crisis.
  • Quarantine protocols: Establish procedures for workers who become symptomatic or are exposed, including isolation and return-to-work criteria.

Business Continuity Integration

If you are affected, integrate essential worker guidance into broader continuity planning:

  • Succession planning: Identify backup personnel for essential functions and cross-train workers to maintain capability if key personnel become unavailable.
  • Remote capability: Enable remote work where possible for essential functions that do not require physical presence.
  • Supply chain coordination: Coordinate with suppliers and partners to ensure their essential workers can maintain the supply chain supporting your operations.
  • Communication plans: Establish protocols for communicating with essential workers about schedule changes, safety updates, and operational modifications.

State and Local Coordination

Organizations operating across multiple jurisdictions face coordination challenges:

  • Varying definitions: State and local essential worker definitions may differ from federal guidance, requiring location-specific documentation.
  • Enforcement variation: Checkpoint procedures and enforcement intensity vary by jurisdiction.
  • Multi-state operations: Workers crossing state lines may encounter different requirements at each boundary.
  • Timing differences: Jurisdictions may implement and lift restrictions on different schedules.

IT and OT Workforce Considerations

Technology teams supporting critical infrastructure face specific challenges:

  • Physical access requirements: Some IT/OT maintenance requires physical presence at data centers, control rooms, or equipment locations.
  • Remote monitoring improvement: Maximize remote monitoring and management capabilities to reduce necessary physical visits.
  • Cybersecurity continuity: Security operations must continue during pandemic response, potentially with modified staffing.
  • Vendor access: Third-party technicians supporting critical systems need essential worker documentation and access procedures.

Closing analysis

CISA's Essential Critical Infrastructure Workforce guidance gives a framework for maintaining critical operations during pandemic restrictions. If you are affected, use the guidance to document essential worker status, coordinate with authorities, and protect worker health while sustaining operations essential to public welfare.

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Coverage intelligence

Published
Coverage pillar
Infrastructure
Source credibility
73/100 — medium confidence
Topics
CISA · Essential Workforce · COVID-19
Sources cited
3 sources (cisa.gov, iso.org)
Reading time
6 min

References

  1. Version 3.0 — Guidance on the Essential Critical Infrastructure Workforce
  2. CISA Alerts Archive — CISA
  3. ISO/IEC 27017:2015 — Cloud Service Security Controls — International Organization for Standardization
  • CISA
  • Essential Workforce
  • COVID-19
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