President Biden Orders Development of National Occupational Safety and Health Guidelines for COVID

In one of his Executive Orders on January 21^st, President Biden ordered the development of federal guidance for Occupational Safety and Health.

The order addresses issues that are temporary in response to COVID-19 but also begins to address longer term issues.

In particular, Section 2 of the Executive Order provides that within two weeks of the order (February 4, 2021), the Secretary of Labor, acting through the Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA shall:

• issue revised guidance to employers on workplace safety during the COVID-19 pandemic;
• consider whether any emergency temporary standards on COVID-19, including with respect to masks in the workplace, are necessary, and if such standards are determined necessary, issue them by March 15, 2021;
• review the enforcement of OSHA related to COVID-19 and identify any short-, medium-, and long-term changes that could be made to better protect workers and ensure equity in enforcement;
• launch a national program to focus OSHA enforcement efforts related to COVID-19 on violations that put the largest number of workers at serious risk or are contrary to anti-retaliation principles

It will be difficult for OSHA and state and local government entities to meaningfully confer and develop new guidance for implementation by March 15^th.

UWC is reviewing the implementation of this order with respect to impact on workers’ compensation claims, COVID-19 presumptions, and the circumstances under which individuals may refuse offers of work and be paid unemployment compensation.