Category: COVID-19

The COVID-19 outbreak is at top of mind for environment, health, and safety (EHS) professionals nationwide.

Are You Ready for OSHA’s Vaccine-Or-Test Rule?

A federal appeals court lifted a judicial stay on the emergency temporary standard (ETS) requiring employee COVID-19 vaccination or weekly testing, and the U.S. Supreme Court is hearing arguments January 7, 2022, about staying or striking down the rule. Will you be ready if the Supreme Court leaves the rule in place? The Occupational Safety […]

California Readopts COVID-19 ETS

The California Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board December 16 readopted the state’s COVID-19 prevention emergency temporary standard (ETS), with revisions. The revised ETS incorporates the latest recommendations from the California Department of Public Health (CDPH). The readopted state ETS does not contain the vaccine-or-testing requirements of the November 5 federal ETS, which was under […]

An Overview of President Biden’s Workplace Vaccine Mandate

On September 9, President Biden introduced his plan for dealing with COVID-19 in the upcoming months. Since then, court challenges and political opposition have made it difficult for the plan to move forward. A team of legal experts discussed this new plan in depth last month in a webinar.   What is the Biden plan?    The president’s plan, called the Path Out of the […]

Appeals Court Reinstates OSHA Vaccine-or-Test ETS

A federal appeals court December 17 lifted a stay on the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) emergency temporary standard (ETS) requiring large employers to implement a program of COVID-19 vaccination for employees or coordinate weekly testing. OSHA will not issue citations for noncompliance with any requirements of the ETS before January 10, 2022, the […]

Is an HVAC Upgrade Your Ticket to RTO?

Have you had to delay your return-to-office (RTO) date due to surges of COVID-19 in your community? If your employees have already returned, are you worried about the spread of the Omicron variant? Are you skeptical about the value of indoor air quality, or instead, have you wondered about adding portable air cleaners? Have you […]

California Board Weighing COVID-19 ETS Renewal

The California Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board meets December 16 to consider readoption of the state’s COVID-19 emergency temporary standard (ETS). The ETS, originally adopted in November 2020, was readopted June 17 and expires January 14, 2022. Under California administrative law, emergency standards remain in effect for 180 days, but the board may twice […]

Cleanliness Tops Return-to-Work Priorities for Both Vaccinated and Unvaccinated Employees

With COVID-19 cases surging and the fear of contracting the next highly transmissible contagion widespread, American workers are placing a renewed emphasis on cleaning, according to a new survey by the Cleaning Coalition of America. The survey finds that U.S. workers increasingly value enhanced cleaning of the workplace and feel safer seeing professional cleaners on site—a […]

Employers Await More Legal Action as Last Federal Vax Mandate is Put on Hold

With the last of the federal COVID-19 vaccination mandates shut down at least temporarily, employers are in a wait-and-see mode as they ponder next steps in the effort to do business during a pandemic. On December 7, a federal judge in Georgia issued a nationwide injunction against the vaccine mandate on federal contractors. Previously, a […]

Emerging Viral Pathogens Guidance Extended

The EPA announced November 19 it is “indefinitely extending COVID-19 activation of the emerging viral pathogens (EVP) guidance for antimicrobial pesticides. EPA’s EVP guidance for antimicrobial pesticides is a part of the federal government’s pandemic preparedness, allowing manufacturers to provide the Agency with data, even in advance of an outbreak, demonstrating that their products are […]

Employers on Alert as They Assess Threat of Omicron Variant

The emergence of a new COVID-19 variant has put employers on notice that they may need to beef up their safety protocols or change reopening plans as the omicron variant makes its entrance in the United States. The new variant was discovered abroad in late November. Then, on December 1, the White House confirmed the […]