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Faced with concerns among workers about the spread of COVID-19, the California Department of Motor Vehicles announced in a memo to employees Thursday that it is closing all of its more than 170 field offices to the public starting Friday.

In a memo obtained by The Times that was sent to employees on Thursday, DMV Field Operations Deputy Director Coleen Solomon wrote that the closures are part of the agency “taking steps to address employee health and safety concerns, including public contact and increasing social distancing between individuals.”

Employees will be placed on paid administrative time off as the offices are closed for cleaning and disinfecting from March 27 to 31, and staff will return to work April 1 though the offices will remain closed to the public.

When employees return to work on April 1, they will receive training to process online transactions, the memo said. The DMV had previously scaled back operations but employees remained concerned about coming into close contact with customers who might carry the coronavirus.

Read the full story on LATimes.com.