OSHA Issues New Guidance: Protecting Workers and Preventing the Spread of COVID

On January 29, 2021, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) posted new guidance for employers and workers on how to mitigate and prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the workplace, not including health care and emergency response settings. The guidance consists of best-practice recommendations and descriptions of mandatory safety and health standards. Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act, employers must comply with OSHA safety and health standards and regulations and provide workers with a workplace free from recognized hazards that are causing or likely to cause death or serious physical harm.

Employer-Implemented COVID-19 Prevention Programs

OSHA recommends that employers establish COVID-19 Prevention Programs and engage workers and unions in the program development process. According to OSHA guidance, prevention programs should include the following elements:

• Assigning a workplace coordinator to manage COVID-19 issues for the employer.

• Identifying potential workplace hazards that may result in worker exposure to COVID-19.

• Identifying measures that will limit the spread of COVID-19 in the workplace, including:

  • Separating and sending home infected or potentially infected workers.

  • Implementing physical distancing in all work areas and allowing remote work and telework when possible.

  • Installing barriers when physical distancing is not possible.

  • Requiring the use of face coverings and other applicable PPE.

  • Improving ventilation.

  • Providing the supplies needed for handwashing and other hygiene practices.

  • Cleaning and disinfecting routinely.

• Creating policies and practices to protect higher-risk workers, such as older workers and workers with serious underlying medical conditions, and allowing reasonable modifications to their work environments. 

• Establishing an effective system for communicating with workers about COVID-19 symptoms and potential exposures and hazards at the workplace. 

• Training workers on COVID-19 policies and procedures in a language they understand. 

• Instructing infected or potentially-infected workers to stay home and isolate or quarantine.

• Minimizing the negative impact of quarantine on workers by allowing them to telework or work in an isolated area. If these options are not possible, consider allowing workers to use paid sick leave or implementing paid leave policies.

• Isolating workers who exhibit COVID-19 symptoms at work. 

• Following CDC cleaning and disinfection recommendations when someone who has been in the building is suspected or confirmed to have COVID-19, which includes:

  • Closing areas used by the infected person for enhanced cleaning.

  • Opening outside doors and windows to improve circulation.

  • Waiting as long as possible before cleaning or disinfecting (24 hours, if possible).

  • Cleaning and disinfecting all work areas and equipment used by the infected person.

  • Vacuuming as needed. 

  • Providing disposable gloves and additional necessary PPE to cleaners.

  • Disinfecting the surface after cleaning.

• Providing workers with guidance on COVID-19 screening and testing.

• Recording and reporting COVID-19 infections and deaths.

• Implementing protections against retaliation and establishing an anonymous process for workers to report concerns.

• Offering COVID-19 vaccination at no cost to eligible employees. 

• Ensuing that workers who are vaccinated continue to follow face covering and physical distancing requirements. 

Additional Guidance for Workers

OSHA recommends that workers adhere to the following recommendations to help limit the spread of COVID-19:

• Stay at least 6 feet (about two arm lengths) away from other people.

• Wash your hands often and practice good personal hygiene.

• Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when coughing or sneezing, or use the inside of your elbow.

• Monitor your health daily for COVID-19 symptoms such as fever, cough, and shortness of breath.

• Wear face coverings made from at least two layers of a tightly-woven breathable fabric (such as cotton) that do not have exhalation valves or vents. You should wear a face covering even if you do not feel sick or have already been vaccinated.

• Ask your employer about steps they are taking to establish a COVID-19 prevention program in your workplace.

By following this OSHA guidance, both workers and employers can help limit the spread of COVID-19 in the workplace. OSHA will update its guidance as needed to incorporate new scientific developments and additional information that is discovered about COVID-19.