President Biden Issues Executive Order Directing OSHA to Shore Up Its COVID-19 Safety Rules

January 27, 2021 Publications

On this first full day in office, President Biden issued a number of executive orders – one of which stands to benefit the construction industry.  On January 21, 2021, President Biden directed the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to take “swift action” to review workplace safety enforcement efforts established during the COVID-19 pandemic and issue “science-based guidance” to help keep workers safe while on the job. 

Specifically, in his Executive Order on Protecting Worker Health and Safety, President Biden ordered OSHA to

  • Consider whether any emergency temporary standards on COVID-19 are necessary and, if so, to implement such standards by March 15, 2021;
  • Issue revised COVID-19 workplace safety guidance to employers within two weeks of the January 21, 2021 executive order;
  • Review the current OSHA enforcement efforts related to COVID-19 and identify any short-, medium-, and long-term changes that could be made to better protect workers and ensure equity in enforcement;
  • Launch a national program to focus OSHA enforcement efforts related to COVID-19 on violations that put the largest number of workers at serious risk or are contrary to anti-retaliation principles;
  • Implement a multilingual outreach campaign to inform workers and their representatives of their rights under applicable law.

We expect additional statutory changes and policy revisions to be issued as the 117th Congress takes up its legislative agenda and the Senate confirms President Biden’s Secretary of Labor in the coming weeks.

Laurie & Brennan is aware of the lengths that its clients have gone to keep workers and job sites safe.  We are hopeful that OSHA’s actions in response to President Biden’s Executive Order will further minimize job site risks to construction workers, simplify safety workplace rules and requirements, and provide construction industry employers with understandable compliance protocols that will allow for better tracking and reporting.

Laurie & Brennan will monitor OSHA’s response to President Biden’s Executive Order on Protecting Worker Health and Safety and provide prompt updates.

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