For this Thanksgiving week episode, Michael Schmidt is joined by several Cozen O'Connor colleagues to discuss the likely impact of President Trump's second administration on such L&E issues as federal agency regulation and...more
Following historical precedent, OSHA’s top ten cited violations for 2024 surprise no one. They all appeared on last year’s list, although their relative positions changed a bit. Fall protection (general requirements) remains...more
OSHA recently shared preliminary data for its Top 10 list in fiscal year 2023 which ended September 30, 2023. They are listed below in order of most frequently cited:
1. Fall Protection – General Requirements (1926.501)-...more
As technology evolves, unfortunately, so do ways to hack that technology. The recent cyberattacks in several casinos in Las Vegas are just one recent example of the growing concern about cyberattacks on businesses and the...more
Unpreventable employee misconduct is an affirmative defense commonly asserted to OSHA citations. To generally prevail on this defense, an employer must show that it 1) established work rules designed to prevent the violative...more
The short answer is the proverbial attorney response, “it depends.” Under OSHA’s multi-employer citation policy, an employer may be held responsible for the violations of other employers where it could reasonably be expected...more
On November 18, 2021 Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed legislation banning private employers, regardless of size, from mandating COVID-19 vaccinations unless several exemptions are offered to employees. Effective...more
In a very strongly worded 22-page opinion, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit reaffirmed its earlier stay of OSHA’s COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS) calling for employee vaccination or weekly testing...more
The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) maintains an occupational safety and health plan that is approved and monitored by the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (federal OSHA)....more
On July 6, 2021, the Department of Labor for the state of New York published its model Airborne Infectious Disease Exposure Prevention Plan (the Model Plan) under the New York Health and Essential Rights Act (HERO), which was...more
On May 5, 2021, Governor Cuomo of New York signed the New York Health and Essential Rights Act (HERO Act) into law. The HERO Act creates occupational safety and health standards in the private sector for all airborne...more
5/14/2021
/ Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Responsibilities ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
New Legislation ,
Reasonable Prevention Procedures ,
State and Local Government ,
State Labor Laws ,
Workplace Safety
It is probably safe to say that as more businesses continue to reopen without restrictions and there is increased availability to vaccine supplies, many employers are considering whether they want to implement a mandatory...more
Both federal and state OSHA regulators have been regularly citing employers for failure to comply with their respective respiratory protection standards in connection with COVID-19 inspections and these citations have not...more
Under OSHA’s Recording and Reporting Occupational Injuries and Illnesses regulation, employers are required to affirmatively notify OSHA when an employee suffers a work-related hospitalization, amputation, or loss of an eye...more
On January 29, 2021, OSHA issued revised COVID-19 updated guidance for employers following an executive order issued by President Biden directing the agency to do so. The guidance contains many suggestions that employers are...more
2/4/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
OSHA ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Public Health ,
Workplace Safety
It is that time of year again where many businesses provide their employees with the opportunity to participate in various charitable events in the spirit of giving. Doing so may raise a number of employment-related issues...more
On May 19, 2020, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) published revised enforcement guidance detailing when employers must record COVID-19 illnesses. ...more
On April 10, 2020, OSHA issued additional guidance for employers on their obligations to record COVID-19 cases.
Prior to this guidance, OSHA made clear that COVID-19 cases may be recordable if a worker is infected as a...more
It is not unusual for OSHA to request “enhanced abatements” when resolving citations. Enhanced abatement is when an employer agrees to perform certain abatement actions beyond the recognized hazard in the specifically cited...more
As the evolving coronavirus virus (COVID-19) first discovered in China continues to grow in both China and other countries including the United States, businesses here need to consider a number of factors in preparing a...more
As the evolving coronavirus virus (COVID-19) first discovered in China continues to grow in both China and other countries including the United States, businesses here need to consider a number of factors in preparing a...more
2/27/2020
/ Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Best Practices ,
Business Continuity Plans ,
China ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Employee Privacy Rights ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Leave of Absence ,
OSHA ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Public Health ,
Risk Management ,
Title VII ,
Wage and Hour ,
Workplace Safety
As mentioned in our last blog, the time for covered employers to post the OSHA 300A Summary is from February 1 to April 30. It is also a good time to revisit the issue of what kinds of injuries and illnesses should be...more
It’s that time of year again – for covered employers to post the OSHA 300A, i.e., a summary of the total number of job-related injuries and illnesses that occurred last year. The OSHA 300 Log is not required to be posted,...more
Most employers with more than 10 employees are required to keep a record of serious work-related injuries and illnesses. However, minor injuries requiring only “first aid” generally do not need to be recorded. OSHA’s...more
Some may remember in 2008, OSHA issued a general duty citation against a national retail store when one of its employees was knocked to the ground and crushed by a crowd of about 2,000 shoppers surging into the store for a...more