On April 10, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued interim guidance for enforcing OSHA’s recordkeeping requirements (29 CFR Part 1904) as it relates to recording cases of COVID-19.

According to the OSHA press release,

“In areas where there is ongoing community transmission, employers other than those in the healthcare industry, emergency response organizations (e.g., emergency medical, firefighting and law enforcement services) and correctional institutions may have difficulty making determinations about whether workers who contracted COVID-19 did so due to exposures at work. Accordingly, until further notice, OSHA will not enforce its recordkeeping requirements to require these employers to make work-relatedness determinations for COVID-19 cases, except where: (1) There is objective evidence that a COVID-19 case may be work-related; and (2) The evidence was reasonably available to the employer. Employers of workers in the healthcare industry, emergency response organizations and correctional institutions must continue to make work-relatedness determinations pursuant to 29 CFR Part 1904.”

Read the OSHA interim guidance here as well as ABC general counsel Littler Mendelson’s analysis.

In a statement, ABC Vice President of Vice President of Health, Safety, Environment and Workforce Development Greg Sizemore said, “ABC is pleased OSHA has clarified its position regarding the recordability of COVID-19 cases under its recordkeeping rules, which provides greater certainty to our member contractors. As a member of the Construction Industry Safety Coalition, we expressed in a March letter to OSHA significant concerns about putting construction contractors in an almost impossible position of determining whether a particular case of COVID-19 that presents in the workplace is considered ‘work-related.’ The updated OSHA guidance will continue to let contractors focus on the taking the necessary steps to ensure compliance with health recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and overall jobsite safety, which is paramount for ABC and its 21,000-plus members.”

Additional resources:

• OSHA COVID-19 webpage
• ABC archived webinar, COVID-19 and OSHA Compliance
• ABC Safety Resources
• Coronavirus Update

This article is intended for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice or opinion.