On May 1, 2023, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced that it has begun a National Emphasis Program (NEP) to prevent and reduce fall-related injuries and fatalities for people working at heights in all industries.
Continue Reading OSHA Announces National Emphasis Program to Prevent and Reduce Workplace Falls
Back in January, we posted about the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (“OSHA”) intention to convene a Small Business Advocacy Review Panel (“SBAR Panel”). This Panel would help decide whether OSHA should enact a Prevention of Workplace Violence in Healthcare and Social Assistance standard.
Continue Reading OSHA Continues to Pursue Healthcare Workplace Violence Rule
The increase in the frequency of violent confrontations faced by healthcare workers in the workplace is prompting OSHA to pursue a standard for Prevention of Workplace Violence in the Healthcare and Social Assistance industries. Healthcare workers have faced a significant increase (63% from 2011-2018) in the incidence of violent and aggressive acts in the workplace, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Association of American Medical Colleges. According to OSHA, “nonfatal workplace violence is more widespread in the Healthcare and Social Assistance Standard than in any other industry.”
On January 4, 2023, the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) released the 2022 Unified Regulatory Agenda and Regulatory Plan (Fall 2022 Agenda) that reports on all planned rulemaking actions of administrative agencies. According to the Fall 2022 Agenda, the Department of Labor (DOL), Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) are pursuing a long list of thirty regulatory actions, similar to the Spring 2022 agenda, including the addition of a rule regarding Procedures for Use of Administrative Subpoenas in OSHA investigations.
Continue Reading OMB Releases Regulatory Agenda for Fall 2022 for OSHA/MSHA/DOL
In January 2022, a worker in a Massachusetts cannabis cultivation facility died because of “the hazards of ground cannabis dust,” according to a report issued by the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA). The OSHA accident investigation report states “Filling pre-rolls She said she couldn’t breathe. Not being able to breathe Marijuana kief (dust) At
On Monday, April 4, 2022, OSHA released a new memorandum to regional administrators regarding enforcement of OSHA’s rule requiring electronic submittal of injury and illness records.
Each week, the agency will be running a computer program to identify employers who might not be complying. While OSHA originally predicted almost half a million employers would need
On March 23, 2022, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) published a notice in the federal register announcing a limited re-opening of the comment period regarding OSHA’s final standard to protect healthcare and healthcare support service workers from occupational exposure to COVID-19. The comment period will end on April 22, 2022, and the virtual public hearing will be held on April 27, 2022. The Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) for Occupational Exposure to COVID-19 for healthcare and healthcare support service workers (OSHA Healthcare ETS) was originally published on June 21, 2021. OSHA has re-opened the comment period to allow stakeholders to address changes the agency is considering that depart from the June 2021 version of the OSHA Healthcare ETS.
Continue Reading Healthcare Industry: OSHA Re-opens Comment Period and Schedules Public Hearing on ETS – Occupational Exposure to COVID-19
On Thursday, November 4, 2021, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued its Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) applicable to employers of 100 or more employees. The ETS requires employers to adopt a soft vaccine mandate obligating employees to either get vaccinated or to undergo regular COVID-19 testing and to wear a face covering at work. OSHA expressly states that the ETS pre-empts all state or local laws that are contrary to the ETS requirements. The ETS will be effective on the date of publication in the Federal Register (November 5, 2021). However, employees who work for covered employers will have until January 4, 2022 to get vaccinated or otherwise comply with the testing/masking requirements.
Continue Reading OSHA Issues COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate for Employers of 100 or More Employees
On October 25, 2021 the US Senate confirmed President Biden’s nominee Doug Parker to be the next Assistant Secretary of Labor and leader of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Mr. Parker will be the first Senate-confirmed leader for OSHA in over four years, as the Trump Administration never pursued a permanent head of
On August 13, 2021, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) published updated guidance for the mitigation and spread of COVID-19 in the workplace. This guidance is for workers not covered by OSHA’s COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard for Healthcare. The guidance adopts recommendations analogous with CDC guidance in response to the spread of the Delta