Last week, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued updated COVID-19 guidance for all industries outside of the healthcare sector.
The new guidance differentiates between protections for vaccinated employees and protections for unvaccinated or otherwise at-risk employees.
Per the new guidance, most employers no longer need to take steps to protect fully vaccinated employees who are not otherwise at-risk from COVID-19 exposure. In line with the CDC, vaccinated employees are not required to wear masks. Vaccinated employees who become infected or have COVID-19 symptoms should stay home from work.
Employers should continue to take steps to protect unvaccinated or otherwise at-risk employees. OSHA recommends, among other protections, that employers grant time off for employees to get vaccinated, instruct unvaccinated employees to stay home if they are infected, had close contact with an individual who tested positive for COVID-19 or have COVID-19 symptoms, and implement physical distancing and provide face masks for unvaccinated or otherwise at-risk employees.
The new guidance highlights the importance of employers continuing to have COVID-19 policies and procedures in place and continuing to educate employees on those policies. The new guidance can be found here.
This post is written by Rachel Felton
