Category: Federal
Oregon Legislative Proposals – SB 592 – Proposes Dramatic Expansion of OR-OSHA Authority. Increase in OR-OSHA Penalties; OR-OSHA Authority to Issue Repeat Violations Expanded; Current Small Business Penalty Adjustment Provision Undermined; OR-OSHA Authority to Impose Abatement Measures expanded; and OR-OSHA Inspection Authority Expanded.
Senate Bill 592 was introduced during the current legislative assembly by the Senate Labor & Business Committee Chair, Senator Kathleen Taylor, D – District 21 – Milwaukie, Oak Grove, SE & NE Portland. Increase OR-OSHA Penalties. SB 592 removes the current provision in the…
Oregon Legislative Proposals – SB 668 Prohibits OR-OSHA fine related to alleged COVID-19 violation if no outbreak of COVID-19.
Senate Bill 668 was recently introduced by Senators Knopp, Anderson and Girod during the 82nd Oregon Legislative Assembly. The bill proposes to create a new statute within ORS Chapter 654, which governs Oregon OSHA. The proposed statute will prohibit OR-OSHA from imposing a civil penalty…
Oregon Legislative Proposals – HB 2143 would Rein in OR-OSHA Wildfire Smoke and Heat Illness Rules.
House Bill 2134 (“HB 2134”) was submitted to House Committee On Business and Labor on January 11, 2023. The bill would limit the rulemaking authority of the Director of Department of Consumer and Business Services related to poor ambient atmospheric conditions and high ambient temperatures….
OSHA Remains in Control Over Emergency Temporary Standards
In re Nat’l Nurses United, No. 22-1002, 2022 WL 3694867 (D.C. Cir. Aug. 26, 2022) In August 2022, a Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia case relating to OSHA’s regulatory rights and the COVID-19 pandemic was published. In In re National Nurses United,…
Federal Contractor Vaccine Mandate Overturned
Georgia v. President of the United States, No. 21-14269, 2022 WL 3703822 (11th Cir. Aug. 26, 2022) In August 2022, an Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals case relating to the COVID-19 pandemic was published. This case represents a shift in federal authority regulating workers’ rights…
Federal OSHA Weekend Work Initiative
Federal OSHA announced its Weekend Work initiative which will allow for workplace safety and health inspections to take place on Saturdays and Sundays throughout Fall 2022. This initiative is meant to specifically focus on construction-related fall hazards. According to OSHA, job sites are not as…
Temporary Worker Best Practices
On July 26, 2022, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health has released a new set of guidelines pertaining to best practices regarding temporary workers (“TWs”). These apply to host employers (“HEs”) of temporary workers (“TWs”) across all industries that employ, or plan to…
OSHA Withdraws Vaccinate or Test Emergency Temporary Standard
Federal OSHA announced today that it is withdrawing its Emergency Temporary Standard (“ETS”) which required employers with 100 or more employees to require workers to either be vaccinated against COVID-19 or to test weekly. The withdrawal takes effect January 26, 2022. Multiple Groups including 26…
Supreme Court Grants Stay of OSHA Vaccinate or Test Mandate; CMS Vaccinate or Test Mandate Allowed to Take Effect
On Thursday, January 13, 2022, the United States Supreme Court granted various states’ and industry groups’ applications to stay OSHA’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate pending further review. Technically, the Court has not yet even taken up the underlying case on its merits, let alone issued a…
U.S. Supreme Court to Hear Oral Arguments on OSHA and CMS Vaccine Mandates
The United States Supreme Court has scheduled oral arguments for January 7, 2022, on the vaccine mandate rules adopted by both OSHA and the Center for Medicare Services (“CMS”). The OSHA mandate applied to employers with more than 100 employees. The CMS mandate applied to…
Washington Adopts New Rules Implementing Public Health Reporting and Notification Requirements
In August 2021, Washington adopted the Health Emergency Labor Standards Act (HELSA). The Act provides a rebuttable presumption of workers’ compensation coverage for certain workers and imposes new notification and reporting requirements on employers in the event of a public health emergency. In response to…
Changes and Clarifications to Loss of Earnings Power (LEP) Benefit Calculations in Washington
On November 29, 2021, The Department of Labor and Industries, through its Loss of Earning Power Workgroup, approved a significant change in how bonuses are utilized in calculating LEP benefits. In addition, the LEP Workgroup provided further clarification on how health care benefits and overtime…
