b'OSHA UPDATE CSIA 27A s I am sure we all suspected, the newGeneralDutyClausecitationneedtoadopta administration has taken an acceleratedCOVID19 Prevention Program. As I have stated and aggressive approach with regardsbefore, the current pandemic is a textbook example to safety in the workplace. On JanuaryofCongresssintentionwhenitdraftedSection 21,2021PresidentBidenissuedanExecutive5(a)(1)oftheOccupationalSafetyandHealth Order on Protecting Worker Health and Safety.Act of 1970. I make this comment for 2 reasons. In this Executive Order, the President stated thatFirst, unlike some areas in which OSHA has been it is the policy of his administration to ensure thesuccessfully challenged for applying the General health and safety of workers as a national priorityDuty Clause, such as with heat illness prevention, and a moral imperative. He further stated that thethe COVID-19recognized hazard has existed federal government must move quickly to reducefor less than one year. So, the defense available the risk that workers may contract COVID19to employers to a General Duty Clause citation in the workplace. In Section 2 of the Executivethat the General Duty Clause may not be used by Order,hestatedthattheAssistantSecretaryOSHA as a substitute for specific rulemaking very ofLaborshallissue,within2weeksofthelikely will not apply to the pandemic. OSHA has dateoftheExecutiveOrder,revisedguidanceissued this guidance document and may well, with toemployersonworkplacesafetyduringthethe urging of President Biden, issue an Emergency COVID19 pandemic. He also required that theTemporaryStandardwithinthenextsixweeks. AssistantSecretaryofLaborconsiderwhetherThe second reason for my statement is that OSHA any emergency temporary standards on COVID has communicated its finding that the pandemic 19 are necessary, and if it is determined that suchisarecognizedhazardwhichiscausingor standards are necessary, they shall be issued bylikely to cause death or serious physical harm to March 15, 2021. employees which are the elements necessary to invoke General Duty Clause. Again, whether you Theguidancedocumentreferredtointheagree with the science that the pandemic meets ExecutiveOrderwasissuedonJanuary29ththis definition, I submit that none of you want to and is 13 pages long and goes into quite a bitbe in a position of having to defend yourself from of detail. I will not go into the detail covered bya General Duty Clause citation because you do the guidance document but just touch upon somenothaveapandemicpreventionplanforyour of the high points. This guidance document canworkforce. befoundontheOSHAwebsiteatwww.osha.gov under Coronavirus resources. OSHA statesPresumingthatyouhavedevelopedthe thatemployersshouldimplementCOVID19required pandemic protection program, I want to preventionprograms.YourprogramshoulddirectyourattentiontotheOSHAwebsiteandCentral States Insulation Associationbedevelopedby:(1)conductingahazardthecoronavirusresourcesavailablethereon. assessment;(2)identifyingacombinationofTheguidancedocumentidentifies15stepsfor measures that limit the spread of COVID19 inemployerstotaketorespondtoCOVID19. the workplace; (3) adopting measures to ensureReview those 15 elements and identify those that thatworkerswhoareinfectedorpotentiallyapply to your business and your employees and, if infected are separated and sent home from theyou have not done so already, develop your COVID workplace; and (4) implementing protections from 19 prevention program and be sure you include retaliationforworkerswhoraiseCOVID19those elements that apply to your company. But, related concerns. please remember that developing the program is only 50% of what you need to accomplish. After While OSHA uses the word should, employersyou have the program, you need to communicate whoareconcernedforthewell-beingoftheirit to all your employees, remind them that you will employeesandwhowishtoavoidanOSHAbe enforcing all the components of your program, continuedpg.28csiaonline.org'