Sedgwick: OSHA Issues Temporary Emergency Standard for Covid Vaccination

Enrollment deadline OSHA issues temporary emergency standard for Covid vaccination approaching soon The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has announced a new Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) to protect more than 84 million workers from the spread of the coronavirus on the job. Under this standard, covered employers must develop, implement, and enforce a mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy, unless they adopt a policy requiring employees to choose to either be vaccinated or undergo regular COVID-19 testing and wear a face covering at work. Employers covered by the ETS - The ETS generally applies to employers in all workplaces that are under OSHA’s authority and jurisdiction, including industries as diverse as manufacturing, retail, delivery services, warehouses, meatpacking, agriculture, construction, logging, maritime, and healthcare. Within these industries, all employers that have a total of at least 100 employees’ firm- or corporate-wide, at any time the ETS is in effect, are covered. Workplaces not covered by the ETS - This standard does not apply to workplaces covered under the Safer Federal Workforce Task Force COVID-19 Workplace Safety: Guidance for Federal Contractors and Subcontractors or in settings where employees provide healthcare services or healthcare support services when subject to the requirements of the Healthcare ETS (29 CFR 1910.502) Employees of covered employers not subject to the requirements - The ETS does not apply to employees who do not report to a workplace where other individuals such as coworkers or customers are present, employees while they are working from home, or employees who work exclusively outdoors. Effective Dates - The ETS is effective immediately upon publication in Federal Register (November 4, 2021). To comply, employers must ensure provisions are addressed in the workplace by the following dates: 30 days after publication: All requirements other than testing for employees who have not completed their entire primary vaccination dose(s); 60 days after publication: Testing for employees who have not received all doses required for a primary vaccination. Employer Policy on Vaccination - The ETS requires covered employers to develop, implement, and enforce a mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy, with an exception for employers that instead establish, implement, and enforce a policy allowing employees who are not fully vaccinated to elect to undergo weekly COVID-19 testing and wear a face covering at the workplace. Determination of employee vaccination status - The ETS requires employers to determine the vaccination status of each employee, obtain acceptable proof of vaccination, maintain records of each employee’s vaccination status, and maintain a roster of each employee’s vaccination status. Employer support for employee vaccination - The ETS requires employers to support vaccination by providing employees reasonable time, including up to four hours of paid time, to receive each primary vaccination dose, and reasonable time and paid sick leave to recover from side effects experienced following each dose. COVID-19 testing for employees who are not fully vaccinated - The ETS requires employers to ensure that each employee who is not fully vaccinated is tested for COVID-19 at least weekly (if in the workplace at least once a week) or within 7 days before returning to work (if away from the workplace for a week or longer). The ETS does not require employers to pay for any costs associated with testing. However, employer payment for testing may be required by other laws, regulations, or collective bargaining agreements or other collectively negotiated agreements. In addition, nothing prohibits employers from voluntarily assuming the costs associated with testing. Employee notification to employer of a positive COVID-19 test and removal - The ETS requires employers to: (1) require employees to promptly provide notice when they receive a positive COVID19 test or are diagnosed with COVID-19; (2) immediately remove any employee from the workplace, regardless of vaccination status, who received a positive COVID-19 test or is diagnosed with COVID-19 by a licensed healthcare provider; (3) keep removed employees out of the workplace until they meet criteria for returning to work. Face coverings - The ETS requires employers to ensure that each employee who is not fully vaccinated wears a face covering when indoors or when occupying a vehicle with another person for work purposes, except in certain limited circumstances. Employers must not prevent any employee, regardless of vaccination status, from voluntarily wearing a face covering unless it creates a serious workplace hazard (e.g., interfering with the safe operation of equipment). Information provided to employees - The ETS requires employers to provide employees the following in a language and at a literacy level the employees understand: (1) information about the requirements of the ETS and workplace policies and procedures established to implement the ETS; (2) the CDC document “Key Things to Know About COVID-19 Vaccines”; (3) information about protections against retaliation and

The deadline to enroll in the Sedgwick workers’ compensation group rating program is just around the corner!

Enrollment paperwork was sent to you for our traditional group rating and/or group retrospective rating programs. The deadline to enroll in these programs is quickly approaching. Don’t miss out on your opportunity for significant premium savings! • Group Rating - Sedgwick must receive your enrollment by November 17, 2021 • Group Retrospective Rating - Sedgwick must receive your enrollment by January 26, 2022. Sedgwick is proud to deliver workers’ compensation claims management and cost containment strategies to nearly 65,000 hard-working Ohio employers and have our endorsement. Sedgwick has saved Ohio employers participating in group rating more than $4 billion over the past ten years and Ohio employers participating in group retrospective rating have earned over $630 million in refunds since implementation in 2009.

For more information, or if you haven’t already applied and would like to receive

a savings quote, contact our Sedgwick program manager, Bob Nicoll at 330-418-1824 or robert.nicoll@sedgwick.com.

Time is running out! Get your paperwork in today!

Reporting COVID-19 fatalities and hospitalizations to OSHA - The ETS requires employers to report work-related COVID-19 fatalities to OSHA within 8 hours of learning about them, and work-related COVID-19 in-patient hospitalizations within 24 hours of the employer learning about the hospitalization.

Availability of records - The ETS requires employers to make available for examination and copying an employee’s COVID-19 vaccine documentation and any COVID-19 test results to that employee and to anyone having written authorized consent of that employee. Employers are also required to make available to an employee, or an employee representative, the aggregate number of fully vaccinated employees at a workplace along with the total number of employees at that workplace.

Note: This is a synopsis of the news release, fact sheets and other information provided on OSHA’s website on November 4, 2021. Further details and a full text of the final rule, along with policy examples and other resources including a recorded webinar can be found at OSHA’s website: https://www.osha.gov/coronavirus/ets2

Sedgwick News

Through the years I have heard employers express the sentiment that their employee was injured because they were not using common sense. Even when someone says they can do the job or have had prior experience that may not be true. Common sense does not necessarily help your employee understand the true requirements of a job task.

Guidance for employees in the form of written safe work practices is important for a clear understanding of job requirements and responsibilities. The objective is to communicate safe work practices so that employees have a clear understanding of how to safely accomplish their job requirements. Both general and job-specific safe work practices must be identified, documented, and made available. Have all employees sign a statement to indicate they have read, understood, and will follow all safe work practices.

Examples of general safe work practice knowledge expected of most employees include: • Good housekeeping • Personal protective equipment • First aid procedures • Ergonomic principles • Hazard recognition and abatement • Emergency Action Plan

Job-specific safe work practices apply to operations and tasks that involve recognized hazards and risks associated with those specific tasks. Job-specific safe work practices must be posted or made readily available in the work area. Examples of job-specific safe work practices include: • Respiratory protection • Lockout/tagout procedures • Confined space entry • Hazard communication • Powered industrial truck operation • Bloodborne pathogens, if applicable • Personal protective equipment (PPE) • Machine/equipment operation • Material handling procedures

Implementation

After the general safety orientation, the supervisor provides new employees with job-specific safety training. Employees should not be allowed to start a job until they have received instructions on how to perform the job properly and safely.

If an employee will perform a hazardous job, the supervisor should complete a Job Safety Analysis (JSA) on that job and incorporates the JSA into the job-specific safety training. JSAs emphasize the identification and control of the potential hazards associated with each step of the job.

Safe work practices are essential for any organization because they prescribe the accepted behavior that is expected from all employees. The safety team may be involved in the development of the employee safety handbook. The handbook includes general safe work practices and specific safe work practices that apply to each job.

Safe work practices usually are printed in an employee safety handbook. The first page of this handbook should include a Safety Policy from senior management.

When providing employees with a safety handbook, review the material with them annually and ask questions to ensure their comprehension. Training should thoroughly support all content. Have employees sign a statement certifying that they understand the safety rules and policies and agree to abide by them. Maintain this signed statement in the employee’s personnel file.

The Division of Safety & Hygiene’s safety, industrial hygiene and ergonomics specialists can help you develop effective strategies to make your workplace safer and healthier. They can visit your workplace or consult with you by telephone or email. These services are available for any private or public employer. BWC also offers specialized options for certain employers. You can request these services online at: info.bwc.ohio.gov or 1.800.644.6292

For more information, please contact Jim Wirth at 614.546.7331 or jim. wirth@sedgwick.com

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