The Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) in coordination with the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) Public Health Division and other technical advisors have created draft rules for a temporary infectious disease standard tailored to COVID-19 response. The standard is intended to create enforceable workplace health rules.
Oregon OSHA’s intent is to use this tailored rule for COVID-19, and replace it with a broad infectious disease standard as a permanent rule. The temporary rule will remain in place for 180 days before a permanent rule takes its place.
While Oregon OSHA initially planned to adopt the rule by October 21 for implementation November 1, the department is conducting further review generally, due to an influx of comments received from stakeholders, and for alignment with the State’s current COVID-19 guidance, including new face covering guidance released Monday, October 19.
After this review, a fourth draft will be released (expected Friday, October 23). Oregon OSHA will accept a final round of comments accepted through October 30 and plans to revise effective dates for the rules accordingly. Additional implementation materials are expected to be distributed on October 23 with the updated draft.
The temporary rule as drafted applies to all Oregon workplaces with additional special provisions for workplaces with exceptional risk. The general requirements fall under 12 broad categories:
- Physical distancing;
- Personal Protective Equipment (PPE);
- Sanitation;
- Posting requirements;
- Building operators;
- Ventilation requirements;
- Distancing officer;
- Exposure risk assessment;
- Employee information and training;
- COVID-19 infection notification process;
- COVID-19 testing for workers; and
- Medical removal.
Some key requirements that will impact counties, if adopted as currently written, include the following:
- Ensure six-foot distancing between all individuals in the workplace, and require face coverings for anyone five years or older when six-foot distancing cannot be consistently assured.
- A vehicle is limited to half its legal passenger capacity or two individuals total, whichever is higher.
- Ensure that all high-contact surfaces used by multiple employees (door handles, telephones, cash registers, computers, drinking fountains, seatbelts, etc.) are thoroughly cleaned at the beginning of each shift.
- All employers must conduct a COVID-19 exposure risk assessment, without regard to the use of personal protective equipment or masks, face shield, or face coverings. The assessment must involve feedback and participation from employees, and address the potential employee exposure of COVID-19 in the workplace such as, but not limited to:
- The ability for employees and patrons to social distance and how it changes during non-routine work activities
- Identifying and promoting remote work opportunities
- How to implement and communicate the required PPE, sanitization, social distancing, and industry specific policies, including methods to report violations and hazards.
- Employers must provide training relevant to the required mitigation practices and allow opportunities for workers to provide input about the workplace related to physical distancing, PPE, sanitation, reporting requirements, and quarantine requirements.
See Section 3 “COVID-19 Requirements for All Workplaces” of the Draft COVID-19 Temporary Standard for more information on the general provisions that apply to all workplaces.
The above requirements apply to all workplaces in Oregon. Additional requirements are in place for workplaces with exceptional risk defined as, direct patient care or environmental decontamination services in a healthcare setting; aerosol-generating healthcare or postmortem procedures; emergency first responder activities; and handling, packaging, cleaning, processing, or transportation human remains, human tissue specimens, or laboratory cultures collected from individuals known or suspected to have COVID-19. See Section 4 “COVID-19 Requirements for Workplaces at Exceptional Risk” of the Draft COVID-19 Temporary Standard for specific requirements.
For more information and the most recent draft temporary rule, see the Oregon OSHA Infectious Disease Rulemaking page.
Additional guidance documents are available in the links below:
- Temporary Oregon OSHA COVID-19 Rule – October 13, 2020 DRAFT Appendix A, Mandatory Workplace Guidance for Specific Industries/Workplace Activities
- Temporary Oregon OSHA COVID-19 Rule – October 13, 2020 DRAFT Appendix B, Mandatory Workplace Guidance for the Use of Filtering Facepiece Respirators to Address COVID-19
Contributed by: Jocelyn Blake | County Road Program Policy Analyst