On June 10, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued an Emergency Temporary Standard designed to better protect employees from exposure to COVID-19 within the health care industry. OSHA also issued new guidance to employers in other industries to further protect employees from COVID-19, with a special emphasis on industries noted for prolonged close contact, such as meat processing, manufacturing, grocery and high-volume retail.
NRCA provided input to OSHA on several occasions in recent months outlining why a COVID-19 ETS was unnecessary and even counterproductive for the construction industry. NRCA is pleased with OSHA’s decision to not include the construction industry in the ETS and commends agency officials for listening to its concerns. NRCA looks forward to continuing to work with the Biden administration regarding workplace safety and other policies important to the roofing industry.
A press release about OSHA’s COVID-19 ETS and guidance can be found here. To view existing resources regarding how contractors can protect employees from contracting COVID-19 in the workplace, please visit the OSHA section of NRCA’s COVID-19 Resources for Roofing Contractors.
