Labor Officials Announce COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard for Healthcare

Last week, the U.S. Department of Labor released its anticipated COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS). However, as NRMCA had advocated for, the ETS only covers the healthcare sector while issuing only new voluntary updated guidance for other industries such as ready mixed concrete. The updated guidance for all other, non-healthcare, industries focuses on protections for unvaccinated and other at-risk workers, encourages vaccination and streamlines access to updated guidance and content.

This development comes as very welcome news to the industry. Back in May, NRMCA’s SEO team met with OIRA and DOL to relay that such a standard is not only not necessary, but that the current COVID-19 cases, deaths and vaccination data don’t support mandating new measures. NRMCA outlined the specifics of the ready mixed concrete industry, its workforce, when, where and how employees work as well as how the industry has kept its workforce safe since the inception of the pandemic. NRMCA also conveyed the work it has done with industry partners on workplace safety and what an ETS should encompass if finalized, which specifically focused on an ETS only covering high risk industries such as healthcare.

Click here to review the healthcare industry-only ETS and here to review the updated OSHA COVID-19 guidance. For more information, contact Gary Mullings at gmullings@nrmca.org or Kevin Walgenbach at kwalgenbach@nrmca.org.