Question?
OSHA recently released new guidance on COVID-19 in the workplace. What are the new requirements?
Answer
Although OSHA’s new guidance is advisory in nature and creates no new legal obligations, one of President Biden’s first acts after being sworn in was to sign an Executive Order on Protecting Worker Health and Safety that directs OSHA to increase enforcement of existing agency standards and investigate whether a new standard for COVID-19 mitigation is needed. Given that, employers may want to consider the new guidelines a strong recommendation.
In a nutshell, OSHA recommends that employers and employees implement a COVID-19 Prevention Program that includes the following elements:
- Masks and social distancing
- A hazard assessment
- Measures to limit the spread of the virus
- Ways to identify (and send home) sick employees and policies for employee absences that don’t punish workers for staying home when sick
- Communication of coronavirus policies and procedures in both English and the primary language of non-English speaking workers
- Protections from retaliation for workers who raise coronavirus-related concerns
What happens if you do not comply?
You open up the chance of inspections and fines. The U.S. Department of Labor’s OSHA announced $4,034,288 in coronavirus violations through January 14, 2021. Read the full list of citations here.
View OSHA’s one-pager on Lessons Learned: Frequently Cited Standards Related to COVID-19 Inspections
If you’re interested, you can learn more about our program to assist you in creating and implementing your COVID-19 Prevention Program here.
