OSHA publishes revised COVID-19 guidelines on worker protection

On June 10, 2021, OSHA published a revised version of its document Protecting Workers: Guidance on Mitigation and Preventing the Spread of COVID-19 in the Workplace (" Workplace Guidance"). This guide was published at the same time as the Temporary Emergency Standard, which only applies to the healthcare sector. The OSHA temporary emergency standard is covered in our separate blog post, which can be found here . Employers in all other industries should follow the recommendations of the workplace guide.

Emphasizing the importance of vaccinating employees, OSHA has now made it clear that "[people] who are fully vaccinated can resume activities without wearing a mask or moving." Therefore, OSHA's revised workplace guidelines primarily focus on measures to protect unvaccinated employees and employees who are vaccinated but have a health condition such as a transplant or previous transplant, long-term use of corticosteroids or other drugs that weaken the immune system could affect the employee's immune system. Response to vaccine.

Workplace guidelines recommend that employers take the following measures to continue protecting unvaccinated or vulnerable workers in their workplace:

1. Give employees paid time off to get vaccinated .
2. Ask all infected workers, unvaccinated workers who have had close contact with someone who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, and all workers who show symptoms of COVID-19 to stay home after their work.
3. Proceed with physical distancing from unvaccinated or vulnerable workers.
4. Make available to workers who are not vaccinated and at risk of having a face covering or surgical mask for use in the workplace. OSHA recommends that unvaccinated and vulnerable workers continue to wear face covers indoors, especially when social distancing is not an option. OSHA continues to encourage companies to encourage unvaccinated customers and guests to wear face covers by posting warning signs, even when state and local requirements no longer require it.
5. Educate and train employees on your COVID-19 policies and procedures.
6. Maintain ventilation systems. In this context, the workplace guide suggests the following measures to ensure that HVAC systems provide adequate ventilation and filtration:

• • Confirm that the HVAC system is operating according to the manufacturer's instructions and design specifications.
  • Perform all regularly scheduled inspections and maintenance.
  • Maximize the amount of outside air supplied by installing air filters with a minimum efficiency of 13 or more whenever possible.
  • Maximize natural ventilation in buildings without an HVAC system by opening windows or doors if necessary.
  • Consider using portable air purifiers with high efficiency particulate filters (HEPA) in rooms with high occupancy or limited ventilation.

7. If a person within 24 hours at the facility has occurred, the has suspected or confirmed Covid-19 to have , follow the recommended cleaning and disinfection of the CDC .
8. Follow OSHA record-keeping requirements and record COVID-19 cases in the workplace if it is considered work-related. Specifically, OSHA says it won't enforce its reporting standard for COVID-19 vaccine side effects until May 2022, and employers must add vaccine side effects diseases to OSHA's 300 registry. In certain limited circumstances, employers may also be required to report work-related COVID-19 deaths or hospitalizations. We encourage you to consult an attorney if you have any questions about OSHA's reporting requirements for death and hospitalization.
9. Implement safeguards against retaliation and establish an anonymous process for workers to raise concerns about the dangers of COVID-19.

With government containment measures expired or soon to be lifted, OSHA's workplace guidelines provide key recommendations for employer response to COVID-19 in this next step (hopefully the end) of the pandemic. Although OSHA has determined that the Occupational Guidelines are a recommendation, material non-compliance with the recommendations could undermine employee confidence in safety measures and / or lead to a reference to general duty.

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