Department of Labor Issues OSHA Guidance As Non-Essential Businesses Reopen
The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has issued guidance to assist employers reopening non-essential businesses and their employees returning to work during the evolving coronavirus pandemic.
The guidance supplements the U.S. Department of Labor and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' previously developed Guidance on Preparing Workplaces for COVID-19 and the White House's Guidelines for Opening Up America Again. The guidelines provide general principles for updating restrictions originally put in place to slow the spread of the coronavirus. During each phase of the reopening process, employers should continue to focus on strategies for the following:
- Basic hygiene
- Social distancing
- Identification and isolation of sick employees
- Workplace controls and flexibilities
- Employee training
Non-essential businesses should reopen as state and local governments lift stay-at-home or shelter-in-place orders and follow public health recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other federal requirements or guidelines. Employers should continue to consider ways to use workplace flexibilities, such as remote work and alternative business operations, to provide goods and services to customers.
OSHA recommends that employers continually monitor federal, state and local government guidelines for updated information about ongoing community transmission and mitigation measures, as well as for evolving guidance on disinfection and other best practices for worker protection.
