Safety

It appears that COVID-19 is here to stay; in fact, variants continue to evolve, with BA.5 (part of the Omicron family) the latest that is causing waves of infection globally. Employers must remain vigilant regarding employee health and safety related to COVID-19 exposure and infection. It was recently reported that OHSA extended its COVID-19 National Emphasis Program (NEP), which focuses on how hospitals and skilled nursing care facilities treat or handle COVID-19 patients. Following an…

The Department of Homeland Security is ending its COVID-19 Temporary Policy for List B Identity Documents. Starting May 1, 2022, employers may only accept unexpired List B documents. The temporary policy allowed employers to accept expired forms of List B identity documents, such as driver’s licenses, state and military ID cards, and voter registration cards, in response to the difficulties with renewing documents during the COVID-19 pandemic. Now that barriers to renewal are largely gone,…

A client approached me recently about updating their company’s employee handbook to include COVID prevention policies. Specifically, we looked at whether or not OSHA has requirements on mask usage in the workplace. OSHA does not have a specific mask policy that applies to all businesses. However, here are some principles that businesses should keep in mind when creating their workplace policies. Safety first In the context of COVID, OSHA says that its guidance is advisory…

Absenteeism due to COVID-19 is a big problem for many businesses right now. The Wall Street Journal recently reported that a surge in factory workers out sick threatens to worsen supply chain problems such as transportation bottlenecks and delayed deliveries. Masks are making their way back to manufacturing floors, and executives are employing various solutions to fortify their workforces and meet staffing needs. Almost everywhere you look – from trash collection services to restaurants and…

Here at Marathon, we are always on the alert to dangers that might befall our clients and their personnel. One we recently identified was a new email phishing scam that leverages information from a company’s human resources or payroll/accounting departments. With this scam, cybercriminals identify a legitimate employee of a company (perhaps through social media or other public-facing information). They then send a spoofed email to the company’s HR, payroll or other finance-related departments requesting…

One of the lessons businesses learned with the shut down in March of 2020 was the importance of having a business continuity plan. With the recent resurgence, many business and public leaders are anticipating a return to some kind of limited operations. Between the looming unknown of COVID infections and the promise of a busy hurricane season, now is the perfect time to revisit among other things your emergency communications plans. The plans you have…

Without a national vaccine mandate and new guidance on when to wear a mask, employers can feel left in the dark when it comes to managing a workforce migrating back to the office. We’ve recently provided insight on employer mandated vaccination, and your right to require vaccinations and/or proof of vaccination, but the documentation and privacy aspects can be overwhelming. As more states look to establishing health passports to support daily business and international travel,…