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Posted By IAMU,
Friday, June 11, 2021
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In response to an executive order issued on January 21, 2021 by President Biden, OSHA submitted an emergency temporary standard regarding employee protections against COVID-19. That standard is now in effect, meaning all employers whose employees provide healthcare services or healthcare support services, must comply with the new 29 CFR 1910 Subpart U — COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard. Examples of that work environment includes skilled nursing homes and home healthcare. There are some exemptions to the standard; first aid provisions conducted by an employee who is not a licensed healthcare provider; dispensing of prescriptions by pharmacists in retail settings; non-hospital ambulatory care settings where all non-employees are screened prior to entry and people with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 are not permitted to enter those settings; well-defined hospital ambulatory care settings where all employees are fully vaccinated and all non-employees are screened prior to entry and people with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 are not permitted to enter those settings; home healthcare settings where all employees are fully vaccinated and all non-employees are screened prior to entry and people with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 are not present; healthcare support services not performed in a healthcare setting (e.g., off-site laundry, off-site medical billing); telehealth services performed outside of a setting where direct patient care occurs.
With the publication of the standard came new guidelines or recommendations, to help prevent the spread of COVID-19 for all other businesses. The CDC's Interim Public Health Recommendations for Fully Vaccinated People explain that under most circumstances, fully vaccinated people need not take all the precautions that unvaccinated people should take. For example, CDC advises that most fully vaccinated people can resume activities without wearing masks or physically distancing. People are considered fully vaccinated for COVID-19 two weeks or more after they have completed their final dose of a COVID-19 vaccine authorized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in the United States. However, CDC suggests that people who are fully vaccinated but still at-risk due to immunocompromising conditions should discuss the need for additional protections with their healthcare providers. CDC continues to recommend precautions for workers in transportation settings.
OSHA recommends that employers take the following steps to protect at-risk or unvaccinated workers:
- Grant paid time off for employees to get vaccinated.
- Instruct any workers who are infected, unvaccinated workers who have had close contact with someone who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, and all workers with COVID-19 symptoms to stay home from work to prevent or reduce the risk of transmission of the virus that causes COVID-19.
- Implement physical distancing for unvaccinated and otherwise at-risk workers in all communal work areas.
- Provide unvaccinated and otherwise at-risk workers with face coverings or surgical masks, unless their work task requires a respirator or other PPE.
- Educate and train workers on your COVID-19 policies and procedures using accessible formats and in language they understand.
- Suggest that unvaccinated customers, visitors, or guests wear face coverings.
- Maintain Ventilation Systems.
- Perform routine cleaning and disinfection.
- Record and report COVID-19 infections and deaths.
- Implement protections from retaliation and set up an anonymous process for workers to voice concerns about COVID-19-related hazards.
- Follow other applicable mandatory OSHA standards.
Under anti-discrimination laws, workers who cannot be vaccinated because of medical conditions, such as allergies to vaccine ingredients, organ transplant or certain religious beliefs may ask for a reasonable accommodation from their employer. Federal OSHA is authorized to set emergency temporary standards that take effect immediately and are in effect until superseded by a permanent standard. OSHA must determine that workers are in grave danger due to exposure to toxic substances or agents determined to be toxic or physically harmful or to new hazards and that an emergency standard is needed to protect them. Then, OSHA publishes the emergency temporary standard in the Federal Register, where it also serves as a proposed permanent standard. It is then subject to the usual procedure for adopting a permanent standard except that a final ruling should be made within six months. Please feel free to contact me at mmeade@iamu.org or 515.289.1999 if you have any questions about the new guidelines or the new Emergency Temporary Standard. The Presidential Executive order may be read in its entirety here: https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/01/21/executive-order-protecting-worker-health-and-safety/The new guidelines, Protecting Workers: Guidance on Mitigating and Preventing the Spread of COVID-19 in the Workplace, may be read in its entirety here: https://www.osha.gov/coronavirus/safeworkClick here for a flowchart to determine if your workplace is covered by the COVID-19 Healthcare ETS
Tags:
COVID-19
OSHA
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Posted By IAMU,
Wednesday, March 31, 2021
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One hundred twenty-nine utilities have earned the American Public Power Association’s (APPA) Safety Award of Excellence for safe operating practices in 2020. Three hundred twenty-nine utilities from across the country entered the annual Safety Awards. Entrants were placed in categories according to their number of worker-hours and ranked based on the most incident-free records during 2020. Utilities’ incidence rate, used to judge entries, is based on the number of work-related reportable injuries or illnesses and the number of worker-hours during 2020, as defined by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). “Utilities that receive an APPA Safety Award have demonstrated that they have made the health and safety of their employees a core value,” said Brandon Wylie, Chair of APPA’s Safety Committee and Director of Training & Safety at Electric Cities of Georgia. “Designing and maintaining a top-notch utility safety program takes a lot of hard work and commitment. These utilities and their communities should be very proud.” The Safety Awards have been held annually for more than 65 years. A complete list of winners is available HERE. IOWA 2020 HonoreesGroup A (less than 15,000 worker-hours of exposure) First Place Rock Rapids Municipal Utilities, IA Group B (15,000 to 29,999 worker-hours of exposure) First Place Coon Rapids Municipal Utilities, IA Independence Light & Power, IA Group C (30,000 to 59,999 worker-hours of exposure) First Place Spencer Municipal Utilities, IA Waverly Utilities, IA Group F (250,000 to 999,999 worker-hours of exposure) Second Place Muscatine Power & Water, IA
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APPA
Electric
OSHA
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Posted By IAMU,
Tuesday, February 2, 2021
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The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has issued revised COVID-19 worker safety guidance, which is available for reading and download HERE. This guidance is designed to help employers identify exposure and contraction risks for COVID-19 in the workplace, and to help you determine the appropriate control measures to implement. The revised OSHA guidance details key measures for limiting coronavirus spread, including providing information on the use of personal protective equipment, improving ventilation, good hygiene and routine cleaning. Covid-19 does not have a specific regulation under OSHA; the new guidance does give descriptions of mandatory safety and health standards that do apply to keep employees safe, i.e. PPE, 300 logs, reporting requirements, respiratory protection, sanitation, and bloodborne pathogens. OSHA also has the General Duty Clause requiring employers to provide a safe and healthful workplace. Most of you have already implemented many of these recommendations and have the mandatory programs in place. What is new in this guidance is the recommendation to conduct hazard assessments as it relates to Covid-19.
As a final reminder, the recommendations found in the guidance are noted by OSHA to be advisory in nature.
Tags:
COVID-19
DOL
OSHA
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Posted By IAMU,
Monday, January 4, 2021
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During the week of August 10-16, 2020, the Iowa Association of Municipal Utilities was one of 38 partners in Iowa and 3452 partners nationwide that participated in OSHA’s Safe and Sound Campaign. This annual event is held to raise safety awareness among employees and to encourage every workplace to develop and implement a safety and health program. A safety and health program is a proactive way to manage hazards in the workplace to prevent illnesses and injuries and includes management leadership, worker participation, and a systematic approach to finding and fixing hazards.  Click here for more information on the Safe + Sound 2020 Year in Review
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DOL
OSHA
Safe + Sound
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Posted By IAMU,
Monday, November 30, 2020
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It’s that time of year again! Time to review, and correct if necessary, your OSHA 300 log entries and post the completed and certified 300A form. Make sure that each 300 log entry has a corresponding 301 form that has the required information entered. This year, we are providing free and unlimited access to the OSHA 29 CFR 1904 Recording and Reporting Occupational Injuries and Illnesses webinar. You may view that webinar at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zh-M4wKq7UA . Please contact Margret Meade at 515.210.6617 or at mmeade@iamu.org with any recordkeeping questions that you may have.
Tags:
OSHA
OSHA 300
Recordkeeping
Safety
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