Laura Brandt - The Retail Lawyer
OSHA: POST COVID CONSIDERATIONS
** For General Information Purposes Only. This Is Not Legal Advice. **
General Duty Clause
SEC. 5. Duties
(a) Each employer --
(1) shall furnish to each of his employees employment and a place of employment which are free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm to his employees;
(2) shall comply with occupational safety and health standards promulgated under this Act.
Assess your work environment and address foreseeable hazards for all workers; not just employees. Common sense is a good starting out point. You should also consider compiling trending information on workers comp and injury claims. Your assessment of your work site will help you to determine what PPE, Work Controls and Engineering controls you need to provide. It’s important to keep in mind that an employer is not obligated to use the most expensive process to reduce risk but must use a method that reasonably addressses foreseeable risks and keeps workers from imminent risk of injury.
Personal Protective Equipment – includes items like gloves, masks, aprons, and goggles. These items need to be provided to employees at the employer’s cost.
Work Controls – methods by which a work process can be modified to decrease or elminate risk of harm to employees.
Engineering Controls – machinery or tools that can be used to limit risk of injury to employees. This must also be provided at employer’s cost.
In terms of training, you don’t need to order fancy videotapes, hire instructors to come onto your site, or spend an enormous amount of time on each topic. Power point presentations, videos, and pamphlets are all acceptable but you must go through the material with your workers and you should make sure to have workers sign off that they received the training provided.
OSHA can i) fine an employer, ii) insist on remedial measures; iii) inspect workplace based on claimed violation and find additional violations at that time; iv) force an employer to post notices about violations; and v) SHUT YOU DOWN.
Information and resources are available at www.OSHA.gov.
Quick Link for YouTube Video of Laura Brandt talking about Post COVID Re-Hiring Employees:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=54hbvi1Hf7I&feature=youtu.be
