Virginia Regulatory Town Hall
Agency
Department of Labor and Industry
 
Board
Safety and Health Codes Board
 
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9/23/20  10:13 am
Commenter: David

Against Long Term Extension
 

1.  Amend § 10G to the agency’s original language providing “safe harbor” for employers who follow CDC and OSHA guidance.

2.  Strike the vague language mandating “flexible” sick leave policies. It is unconstitutionally vague and it exceeds the agency’s statutory authority.

3.  Strike requirements of owners of buildings and facilities to report COVID cases to employer tenants. It exceeds the intent of the Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act to require employers to provide employment and a place of employment that is free of recognized hazards.

4.  Remove hand sanitizer as a requirement. Everywhere else, it is a substitute or a best practice.

5.  Change language to apply hazard levels to job tasks instead of employers or industries. 

6.  Change the time-based return-to-work rule requiring three days of being symptom-free (following the ten-day period since the onset of symptoms) to one, consistent with the new CDC standard.

7.  Eliminate the requirement to report positive cases to the Department of Health. Health care providers are already doing this.

8.  Eliminate the redundant language regarding employee refusal to work because they feel unsafe. The criteria for protected work refusals are already in the Administrative Regulatory Manual.

9.  Define “minimal contact.”

10.  Eliminate requirements to include business considerations (e.g., how to handle supply chain issues, cross-training to prepare for staff shortages) that have nothing to do with employee safety.

CommentID: 85413