Grocery stores scramble to get masks for employees
Many large grocery chains staying open during the coronavirus outbreak have been slow to provide store and warehouse employees with masks, despite growing concern from employees and unions. Walmart, Target, Amazon, Lowe’s, Walgreens, Instacart and Doordash all announced in recent days they would start providing employees with masks in the coming weeks, but basks are extremely hard to source right now. KTEN
Companies making their own safety rules during outbreak
The National Retail Federation says its members are following government guidance guidance and recommendations, but the federal government lacks uniform directions for all retailers and grocery stores to protect employees during the pandemic. Retailers have responded with a patchwork system as the outbreak worsens and employees’ fears of contracting the virus on the job intensify. WTOP
Fed-OSHA finds willful and serious violations in hotel collapse
Fed-OSHA has issued citations in the collapse last October of the 18-story Hard Rock Hotel in New Orleans, charging that beams and other load-bearing structures on the upper floors were not properly designed, causing structural problems. Three construction workers were killed, including two whose bodies remain buried in the rubble on the site. One engineering firm has been fined $154,200, roughly half the fines assessed by the agency related to the collapse. New Orleans Times-Picayune
Defense employees report poor coronavirus response at two facilities
Employees at a naval base in Naples, Italy say base leaders have resisted calls to suspend non-essential services to slow spread of the coronavirus, effectively defying a country-wide lockdown. Additionally, employees at a US Army health clinic in Virginia have complained to Fed-OSHA that a medical center failed to respond to an employee’s positive COVID-19 test. Government Executive
Between March 23, when the governor ordered most businesses in the state to close, and March 29, Oregon OSHA received about 1,300 complaints about unsafe workplaces, according to an agency spokesman. What businesses can stay open? Where can Oregonians get necessities like food and prescriptions? Who do I talk to if an employer isn’t protecting employees? Statesman Journal
Can face masks be decontaminated if they must be reused?
Are there ways to decontaminate cloth or paper face masks if they must be reused? WMYA/WLOS [with video]
Can your boss make you come to work during coronavirus outbreak?
Federal guidelines allow state and local authorities to decide which businesses are essential during crises. As the coronavirus pandemic ramps up, many employees may be asking what rights they have if, or when superiors request they return to the office. SouthCoastToday