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The COVID-19 outbreak is at top of mind for environment, health, and safety (EHS) professionals nationwide.
The Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration (MIOSHA) cited 19 different businesses with serious “general duty” violations for failing to implement safety and health workplace guidelines, exposing employees to hazards of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). COVID-19 is a respiratory disease caused by infection of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
On September 14, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) issued a request for information and comment on the deployment to and use of elastomeric half-mask respirators (EHMRs) by emergency medical services (EMS) organizations and in healthcare settings during the ongoing coronavirus diseases 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic (85 FR 56618).
Why are there still shortages of N95 filtering facepiece respirators (FFRs)? Basically, when the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic was declared in March, a spike in demand for N95 respirators met a “just-in-time” supply chain. Both industry and government have moved to address shortages. COVID-19 is a respiratory disease caused by an infection of the […]
You may worry about a workplace outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in your offices or facilities, but do you need to budget for upgrading your heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems to hospital-grade standards?
The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) issued citations to frozen food manufacturer Overhill Farms Inc. and a temporary employment agency Jobsource North America Inc. for failing to protect hundreds of employees from COVID-19 at two plants in Vernon. The agency proposed penalties of over $200,000 for each employer.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited Smithfield Packaged Meats Corp. in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, for failing to protect employees from exposure to the coronavirus (COVID-19). The agency proposed a penalty of $13,494 for a single violation, which is the maximum allowed by law.
The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) announced it had cited 11 employers for not protecting employees from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) exposure during the agency’s inspections of industries where workers have an elevated risk of exposure. The industries included agriculture, food processing, health care, meatpacking, and retail.
On August 31, AIHA (formerly the American Industrial Hygiene Association) released guidance documents and a white paper for employers trying to control workplace infections during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.
The Department of Labor Office of the Inspector General (OIG) released an audit report of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) handling of whistleblower complaints during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. The OIG recommended that OSHA fill staff vacancies in the Whistleblower Protection Program (WPP), continue a pilot triage program in its Region […]
Oregon has proposed an emergency temporary standard for workplace coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) transmission. While there is no federal workplace safety and health standard for coronavirus exposures, California has an airborne transmissible disease standard for certain workplaces, and Virginia approved an emergency temporary standard for COVID-19 in July.