Biden administration addresses COVID-19 workplace challenges within first 10 days

On January 21—President Joseph R. Biden, Jr.’s second day in office—he issued an Executive Order (EO) titled “Protecting Worker Health and Safety,” directing the Department of Labor (DOL) and the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) to issue new guidance on COVID-19-related workplace safety. To provide additional protection for workers, the president directed OSHA to review its current guidance, consider implementing emergency temporary standards addressing the dangers presented by the virus, and review its enforcement efforts and devise any changes necessary to ensure more equity in enforcement. In conjunction with increasing its enforcement efforts, the EO requires OSHA to launch a national program to address violations that put the greatest number of employees at risk of viral infection and to publicize its efforts through a multilingual outreach campaign, which informs employees of their rights under the agency’s applicable regulations.

OSHA issues guidance to limit COVID-19 spread in the workplace

On January 29, OSHA issued new guidance entitled “Protecting Workers: Guidance on Mitigating and Preventing the Spread of COVID-19 in the Workplace.” The publication, which is supplemented by industry-specific guidance, provides recommendations to assist employers in creating and maintaining a safe and healthy workplace, while also describing OSHA’s current mandatory safety and health standards.

The January 29 guidance reminds employers they should implement COVID-19 prevention programs. According to OSHA, such workplace programs typically include the following key components: