When it became apparent yesterday that the wildfire smoke cascading throughout parts of the Northeastern United States was having a serious health effect on anyone outside and exposed to the harmful particulates contained in...more
In a recent decision in the Eastern District of New York, Walsh v. Community Health Center of Richmond, Inc., et al., 21-CV-3094 (ARR)(TAM), the court held that OSHA has the right to pursue individual damages for a...more
The use of “leased” employees continues to skyrocket. Between 1992 and 2017, it is estimated that the number of people working for employee leasing firms increased 682%, from 341,884 to 2.7 million. There are a variety of...more
On March 30, 2022, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) published new proposed rules regarding electronic recordkeeping requirements. Specifically, OSHA has sought to revise recordkeeping rules related to...more
On December 18, 2021, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals lifted the Fifth Circuit’s national stay of OSHA’s general duty COVID Emergency Testing Standard (ETS) that covers private employers with 100 or more employees, except...more
To state the obvious, the pandemic has resulted in completely unexpected change across the country in so many ways. OSHA’s visibility and role are probably one of the most significant changes to any federal agency. Prior to...more
12/16/2021
/ Cal-OSHA ,
Construction Industry ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Enforcement ,
Manufacturers ,
Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) ,
Occupational Injury ,
OSHA ,
OSHRC ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Workplace Safety
On November 18, 2021 Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed legislation banning private employers, regardless of size, from mandating COVID-19 vaccinations unless several exemptions are offered to employees. Effective...more
In a very strongly worded 22-page opinion, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit reaffirmed its earlier stay of OSHA’s COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) calling for employee vaccination or weekly testing...more
As we reported a day after the November 5, 2021, effective date of OSHA’s ETS, the Fifth Circuit issued a temporary stay of the ETS pending further proceedings. On November 12, 2021, a three-judge panel of the Fifth Circuit...more
OSHA’s long-awaited general industry COVID-19 emergency temporary standard (“ETS”) was officially published today and became effective immediately for employers in those states without “state OSHA” plans. However, employers...more
On October 27, 2021, OSHA published an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (“ANPRM”) to initiate a comment period to gather diverse perspectives and expertise on heat stress issues such as heat stress thresholds, heat...more
In an announcement that is unprecedented in OSHA’s 50 year history, it was announced today that the Labor Department plans to issue, in record time, an emergency temporary standard (ETS) to require employers with more than...more
On May 26, 2021, we told our readers that we thought that although an “emergency” no longer existed about OSHA’s need to regulate employers’ handling of the COVID-19 virus. OSHA would nonetheless still issue an emergency...more
6/14/2021
/ Cal-OSHA ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Documentation ,
General Duty Clause ,
Healthcare Workers ,
Masks ,
New Guidance ,
OSHA ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Risk Assessment ,
Social Distancing ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
The one question on everyone’s mind is when, if ever, will employers learn whether OSHA will actually issue the COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (“ETS”) that OSHA delivered to the White House’s Office of Management and...more
5/26/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Cal-OSHA ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Executive Orders ,
Masks ,
OIRA ,
OMB ,
OSHA ,
Public Health ,
SBA ,
Social Distancing ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
Every business in the United States has been asking itself these past few days whether to drop any requirements it may have for visitors or employees to wear face masks since the CDC changed its COVID-19 guidance related to...more
5/20/2021
/ Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Health and Safety ,
Masks ,
New Guidance ,
OSHA ,
Retailers ,
Social Distancing ,
State and Local Government ,
Vaccinations ,
Vaccine Passports ,
Workplace Safety
On May 5, 2021, Governor Cuomo of New York signed the New York Health and Essential Rights Act (the “Act”) into law which amends the New York Labor Law. The Act creates occupational safety and health standards in the private...more
5/10/2021
/ Best Practices ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Employee Handbooks ,
Governor Cuomo ,
Health and Essential Rights (HERO) Act ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
OSHA ,
Re-Opening Guidelines ,
Risk Management ,
State and Local Government ,
Workplace Safety
It is probably safe to say that as more businesses continue to reopen without restrictions and there is increased availability to vaccine supplies, many employers are considering whether they want to implement a mandatory...more
The past several weeks have seen significant action from the major federal agencies involved with employment law: EEOC, NLRB, DOL, and OSHA. In today's new episode, Mike Schmidt will highlight the direction these agencies...more
4/20/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Handbooks ,
Employee Incentive Plans ,
Employee Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Policies ,
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
OSHA ,
Protected Concerted Activity ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
Both federal and state OSHA regulators have been regularly citing employers for failure to comply with their respective respiratory protection standards in connection with COVID-19 inspections and these citations have not...more
On January 21, 2021, President Biden signed an executive order directing OSHA to consider issuing an Emergency Temporary Standard (“ETS”) related to COVID-19. If the ETS is deemed necessary, the executive order instructed...more