A key focus is likely to be the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, which is charged with upholding workplace safety. Biden could take action immediately at OSHA by ramping up inspections, filling vacancies and creating a safety standard that workplaces would be required to follow during the pandemic. “We don’t believe an emergency temporary standard is going to help employers protect employees,” Marc Freedman, a vice president at the U.S. Chamber said in an interview. It is possible but unlikely that the emergency temporary standard will be included in a new stimulus package, should Democrats and Republicans find middle ground in the lame-duck session. “Because there was no solid standard — the CDC kept changing — it was very difficult to get uniformity among our employers.”Perrone said he supported the institution of an emergency temporary standard.

Source: Washington Post November 13, 2020 21:09 UTC