In recent weeks, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has signaled efforts to increase its scrutiny of work activities that may expose workers to heat-related hazards. ...more
9/22/2021
/ Construction Site ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Health and Safety ,
Heat Exposure ,
Labor Reform ,
NEP ,
OSHA ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Workplace Hazards ,
Workplace Safety
On August 26, 2021, the Virginia Safety and Health Codes Board adopted revised amendments to the Final Permanent Standard for Infectious Disease Prevention of the SARS-CoV-2 Virus That Causes COVID-19 (the Final Permanent...more
On September 9, 2021, President Biden released his COVID-19 Action Plan, Path Out of the Pandemic (the “Plan”). The Plan mandates vaccination against COVID-19 for employees working for employers that have 100 or more...more
9/15/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
OSHA ,
Popular ,
Public Health Emergency ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
On September 9, 2021, President Joseph R. Biden released a sweeping new COVID-19 Action Plan, Path Out of the Pandemic. This Plan includes mandates that employees working for large private employers, the federal government,...more
9/10/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Entertainment Venues ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Employees ,
Health and Safety ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Infectious Diseases ,
OSHA ,
Public Health Emergency ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
Introduction Over a year and a half since the pandemic first started to take its toll on the health and welfare of individuals and the economy, the country is still reeling and struggling to recover. Some employers and...more
9/7/2021
/ Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Mandates ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
Labor Regulations ,
Labor Relations ,
NLRB ,
OSHA ,
Supply Chain ,
Telecommuting ,
Unions ,
Vaccinations
On July 9, 2021, Washington’s Department of Labor & Industries filed an emergency rule to increase protection for employees exposed to extreme heat at work. This includes employees working in agriculture, construction, and...more
On July 9, 2021, Washington’s Department of Labor & Industries filed an emergency rule to increase protection for employees exposed to extreme heat at work. This includes employees working in agriculture, construction, and...more
On July 8, 2021, Oregon’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (Oregon OSHA) adopted emergency Heat Illness Prevention rules to establish workplace heat safety requirements that apply when temperatures in a work area...more
On June 10, 2021, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) released its long-awaited COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS), establishing new mandatory requirements generally...more
6/11/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Health and Safety ,
Health Care Providers ,
Healthcare Facilities ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Infectious Diseases ,
OSHA ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Public Health ,
Workplace Safety
In a dramatic shift in its enforcement position with respect to the recordability of adverse reactions from COVID-19 vaccines, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) on May 21, 2021, published a new...more
On April 26, 2021, the Occupational Safety & Health Administration sent emergency workplace safety rules to prevent the spread of COVID-19 to the Office of Management and Budget for review....more
On April 9, 2021, President Biden announced that he intends to nominate Douglas L. Parker to lead the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Mr. Parker is currently the chief of California’s Division of Occupational...more
On April 9, 2021, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) updated its “Strategies for Optimizing the Supply of N95 Respirators.” The update includes changes to respirator-provision strategies at Conventional...more
Executive Summary -
The COVID-19 pandemic required nearly every employer around the globe to take stock of its workforce, policies and practices, and adapt to a rapidly changing and unpredictable environment. COVID-19...more
In response to President Biden’s January 2021 executive order, the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) released a National Emphasis Program (NEP) on March 12, 2021, targeting...more
3/15/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Essential Workers ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Infectious Diseases ,
NEP ,
New Guidance ,
Occupational Exposure ,
OSHA ,
Workplace Hazards ,
Workplace Injury ,
Workplace Safety
On February 16, 2021, the Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) published in the Federal Register a notice of proposed rulemaking to update its Hazard Communication Standard (HCS)....more
On January 29, 2021, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) released guidance for employers: Protecting Workers: Guidance on Mitigating and Preventing the Spread of COVID-19 in the...more
2/10/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
OSHA ,
Public Health ,
Quarantine ,
Return-to-Work Agreements ,
Risk Management ,
Social Distancing ,
Workplace Safety
On January 27, 2021, Virginia Governor Ralph Northam announced that he had approved a Final Permanent Standard (Permanent Standard) for preventing COVID-19 in the workplace, making Virginia the first state in the nation to...more
2/1/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Responsibilities ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Labor Reform ,
Masks ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Public Health ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Workplace Safety
On November 19, 2020, over the vigorous objections of several employers, trade associations, employer agencies, and defense counsel, the California Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board voted unanimously to pass the...more
Although the 2020 presidential election is technically behind us, razor-thin and contested elections for the presidency and Congress remain, potentially drawing out the uncertainty through the new year. As of the date of...more
11/9/2020
/ Equal Pay ,
Federal Labor Laws ,
Independent Contractors ,
Joe Biden ,
Joint Employers ,
Labor Reform ,
Labor Regulations ,
LGBTQ ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Trump Administration ,
Wage and Hour
On September 30, 2020, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) released new Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) regarding an employer’s obligation to report to OSHA cases of work-related COVID-19. The FAQs...more
10/6/2020
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Occupational Exposure ,
OSHA ,
Recording Requirements ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Workplace Illness and Injury Reporting ,
Workplace Injury ,
Workplace Safety
Introduction -
Prior Workplace Policy Institute (WPI) Labor Day Reports focused on key employment developments and trends to provide employers with insight on the state of work and what to expect in the coming year....more
9/8/2020
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employment Discrimination ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Job Creation ,
Labor Regulations ,
On-Demand Services ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Remote Working ,
Telecommuting ,
Unemployment ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Safety
On July 15, 2020, Virginia became the first state in the nation to implement an emergency temporary standard (“ETS”) to address the COVID-19 pandemic. The ETS covers every employer in the Commonwealth and includes mandatory...more
On May 1, as part of Littler’s Virtual Executive Employer, attorney Alka Ramchandani-Raj was fortunate to interview Dr. John Howard, the Director of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), to...more
Over a roughly two-month period, COVID-19 has completely upended work as we know it. Businesses across the globe have struggled to function with limited staff and resources, restructured their workforces, and implemented new...more