Fri, 08/14/2020
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”), which has recommended that workers wear cloth face coverings to prevent the spread of COVID-19, said on July 31, 2020, that cloth face coverings won’t hinder oxygen levels or cause an unhealthy buildup of carbon dioxide. OSHA has not issued any workplace safety standards specifically addressing COVID-19 but said, “[c]loth face coverings … can help prevent the spread of potentially infectious respiratory droplets from the wearer to their co-workers, including when the wearer has COVID-19 and does not know it.”
The new guidance also seeks to debunk mistaken claims that standards relating to respiratory safety and protection from air contaminants on the job prohibit workplace mask mandates, confirming that those standards apply only where there are known or suspected sources of chemicals or where workers are required to enter potentially dangerous locations.
OSHA’s guidance is available at https://www.osha.gov/SLTC/covid-19/covid-19-faq.html.
For more information relating to workers’ rights during the COVID-19 pandemic, visit MSE’s Coronavirus Information Page at https://www.mselaborlaw.com/resources/coronavirus-information.