When it comes to manufacturing operations that are reopening in the face of the continuing Coronavirus pandemic, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has some specific advice to offer.
In recent months, OSHA has issued a string of industry-specific guidance documents for employers to follow. They were adopted after the AFL-CIO filed a lawsuit seeking a court to order the agency to develop a COVID-19 temporary emergency safety standard. In addition, the Democrat-controlled House of Representatives also passed a bill that would require the agency to do the same thing.
Working in conjunction with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),OSHA has issued a guidance specifically aimed at manufacturing workers and employers included in a non-exhaustive list of industry segments: apparel and footwear, battery, chemical, concrete, fireworks, food processing, lead smelters, lubricants, metal, plastics, furniture, automobile, printing, pulp and paper/paperboard mills, semiconductors, textiles and wood products.
The most recent version of the guidance for manufacturers recommends that employers:
● Encourage workers to stay home if they are sick.
● Establish flexible work hours (e.g., staggered shifts), if feasible.
● Practice sensible social distancing and maintain six feet between co-workers, where possible.
● For work activities where social distancing is a challenge, consider limiting the duration of these activities and/or implementing innovative approaches, such as temporarily moving or repositioning workstations to create more distance or installing barriers (e.g., plexiglass shields) between workstations.
● Monitor public health communications about COVID-19 recommendations for the workplace and ensure that workers have access to and understand that information.
● Train workers on how to properly put on, use/wear, take-off, and maintain protective clothing and equipment.
● Allow workers to wear masks over their nose and mouth to prevent the spread of the virus.
● Encourage respiratory etiquette, including covering coughs and sneezes.
● Discourage workers from using other workers’ tools and equipment.
● Use Environmental Protection Agency-approved cleaning chemicals from List N or that have label claims against the Coronavirus.
● Promote personal hygiene. If workers do not have access to soap and water for handwashing, provide alcohol-based hand rubs containing at least 60% alcohol.
● Provide disinfectants and disposable towels workers can use to clean work surfaces.
● Encourage workers to report any safety and health concerns.
For all workers, regardless of specific exposure risks, OSHA reminds that it is always a good practice to:
● Frequently wash your hands with soap and water for at least 20 seconds. When soap and running water are unavailable, use an alcohol-based hand rub with at least 60% alcohol. Always wash hands that are visibly soiled.
● Avoid touching your eyes, nose, or mouth with unwashed hands.
● Practice good respiratory etiquette, including covering coughs and sneezes.
● Avoid close contact with people who are sick.
● Stay home if sick.
● Recognize personal risk factors. According to U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), certain people, including older adults and those with underlying conditions such as heart or lung disease or diabetes, are at higher risk for developing more serious complications from COVID-19.
Other Safety Obligations
In spite of the pressure from Congress and labor unions, attorneys William Wahoff and John Callcott of the Steptoe & Johnson law firm say the agency probably believes the steps it has taken so far should be enough to rebut the arguments of those who demanded the adoption of formal temporary standards.
“OSHA most likely does not perceive the need for a temporary standard when all of the guidance that has been issued and the publicity about the CDC and OSHA from OSHA’s perspective can be used to establish employer knowledge and feasible means of abatement, elements of a general duty clause violation,” they observe.
On June 15, OSHA also reminded all employers—regardless of industry—that they should remain mindful of their other, non-COVID-19-related safety obligations.
It says that as employers go through each phase of reopening, they “need to plan for potential hazards related to the Coronavirus, as well as those stemming from routine workplace processes.” Specifically, employers should be aware that the pandemic might increase employee stress, fatigue and distractions, the agency emphasizes.
“OSHA advises that employers should consider these factors in planning their employees’ return to work to ensure operations resume in a safe and healthful manner,” explain attorneys Matthew Thomas Deffebach and Mini Kapoor of the law firm of Haynes and Boone.
According to the agency, careful planning is critical before employers attempt to increase production or ramp up tasks or processes to make up for any downtime due to the pandemic and to avoid exposing workers to additional safety and health hazards.
OSHA recommends that employers provide workers with “refreshers” on safety and health training and address maintenance issues they may have deferred during a shutdown. Employers should also revisit and update standard operating procedures and remember that exposures to hazards may increase during shutdown and start-up periods.
“It is important for employers to review and address process safety issues—including stagnant or expired chemicals—as part of their reopening effort,” the agency states.
OSHA also made a specific point of reminding employers that the law prohibits them from retaliating against workers for raising concerns about safety and health conditions.
“Employers should encourage workers to report any health and safety concerns—not just COVID-19-related, but also those related to routine workplace processes—and remind workers about the procedure in the workplace to report such concerns,” Deffebach and Kapoor recommend. “Thus, it may be prudent to train managers on how to appropriately handle such complaints.”
