The Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration (MIOSHA) announced it had cited several more employers for failing to protect employees from COVID-19. Michigan was one of a handful of states that established emergency temporary standards (ETSs) last fall for workplace COVID-19 exposures.
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MIOSHA cited 11 more employers for violations of the state ETS for COVID-19 and 4 others for General Duty Clause violations.
Employers cited for violations of the emergency COVID-19 standard included:
- Adrian Urgent Care of Adrian, Michigan, was inspected in response to an employee complaint and cited for an other-than-serious violation for not maintaining daily health screenings for all visitors who entered the workplace.
- Allied Gutter Co. of Romulus, Michigan, was cited and fined $3,700 for fall protection and personal protective equipment (PPE) violations following a planned-programmed inspection, as well as for an other-than-serious violation of COVID-19 Emergency Rules—specifically, the lack of a preparedness and response plan.
- Belle Tire of Woodhaven, Michigan, was inspected in response to an employee complaint and fined $4,000 for violations, including not removing an employee from the workplace suspected of having COVID-19, no physical barriers installed, and inadequately training employees on safeguards related to COVID-19.
- Bloxsom Roofing and Siding Company of Traverse City, Michigan, was fined $2,800 following a planned-programmed inspection for violations of COVID-19 workplace safety requirements that included not developing a preparedness and response plan, no documentation of daily health screenings, no disinfectant, no COVID-19 safety coordinator, and no face coverings worn on-site, as well as violations of the fall protection and ladders standards, with penalties totaling $7,200.
- Bush Brothers Asphalt Paving, Inc., of Farmington Hills, Michigan, was fined $400 for PPE violations following a planned-programmed inspection and cited for an other-than-serious violation of COVID-19 Emergency Rules—specifically, the lack of a preparedness and response plan.
- Complete Maintenance & Cabinetry Inc. of Algonac, Michigan, was fined $2,800 following a planned-programmed inspection for violations that included a lack of a preparedness and response plan, failing to train employees on COVID-19 control strategies, a lack of social distancing, and a lack of face coverings when workers could not consistently maintain 6 feet of social distancing, as well as aerial platform and fall protection violations, with penalties totaling $5,360.
- Dana Incorporated of Saint Clair, Michigan, was inspected as part of the MIOSHA COVID-19 Retail State Emphasis Program and fined $4,000 for failure to require face coverings when social distancing could not be maintained; not contacting the local health department when three known positive COVID-19 cases were detected at the workplace; and not maintaining a record of employee COVID-19 training, daily health screenings, and notification to the local health department of known COVID-19 cases at the workplace.
- Fusco Construction, LLC, of Dundee, Michigan, was fined $1,000 following a planned-programmed inspection for serious violations of COVID-19 Emergency Rules—specifically, the lack of a preparedness plan, no face coverings, no hand sanitizer or washing facilities, not performing daily health screening of employees, and no COVID-19 safety coordinator, as well as several other workplace violations, with penalties totaling $4,100.
- J&N Electric, Inc., of Ishpeming, Michigan, was fined $400 following a planned-programmed inspection for not developing a preparedness and response plan, no documentation of daily health screenings, not providing COVID-19 training, and no face coverings worn on-site, as well as other workplace violations, with penalties totaling $2,000.
- Multi-Shores Development, LLC, of Traverse City, Michigan, was fined $1,000 following a planned-programmed inspection for violations of COVID-19 workplace safety requirements for a lack of a preparedness and response plan and no face coverings, as well as several other workplace violations, with penalties totaling $8,100.
- Royal Roofing Co. of Lake Orion, Michigan, was fined $3,000 following a planned-programmed inspection for a lack of face coverings when workers could not consistently maintain 6 feet of social distance from other employees, as well as other workplace violations, with penalties totaling $8,400.
- Spartan Precision Machining Inc. of Lansing, Michigan, was inspected in response to an employee complaint and fined $2,800 for violations at its Wixom, Michigan, facility, including not developing and implementing a written COVID-19 preparedness and response plan, not conducting daily entry self-screen protocols, not requiring face coverings to be worn when employees could not consistently maintain 6 feet of separation, and not providing training to employees on SARS-CoV-2 and COVID-19.
There is no federal COVID-19 or infectious disease standard. On January 21, President Joe Biden ordered the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to consider establishing an ETS for workplace COVID-19 protections by March 15.