Do you own or manage a skilled nursing facility?
Do you provide non-skilled personal care to clients in their homes?
Do you provide respirators, such as N95 filtering facepieces for your employee’s voluntary use?
Do you allow N95 (filtering facepiece respirators) to be used at your worksites (even if you do not provide them)?
Have you required or allowed the use of N95 respirators in your workplace or at client worksites (homes) in response to COVID-19?
If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, you need to learn about OSHA’s Respiratory Standard and prepare for how it impacts your business!
• Are you aware that whenever respirators are required, employers must:
• Implement a written, worksite-specific respiratory protection program (RPP)?
• Include a medical evaluation for every affected employee?
• Include fit testing for every affected employee?
• Include OSHA-specific employee training?
• Comply with other OSHA-mandated details of the Program?
Are you aware that if you allow (permit) voluntary use of N95 respirators in your workplace you must establish and implement a written respiratory protection program that ensures:
• Employees are medically able to use the respirator they voluntarily use?
• Employees are trained in respirator use, cleaning, storage, and maintenance?
• Employees are trained in understanding hazards of respiratory use?
• You provide voluntary users of respirators (including N95s) with “Mandatory Information” under the Standard?
TGE was recently engaged by a Home Health business that was issued an OSHA Citation for failing to have a Written Respiratory Protection Program for its employees. There are 6 primary areas where employers may be cited by OSHA for Respiratory Program violations – each is a serious violation and penalties for serious violations start at $7000 each. Even after hiring an attorney to assist in negotiating a settlement agreement, TGE’s client paid almost $12,000 to OSHA. TGE’s Written Respiratory Protection Plan, Employee Training Module, Fit Testing Module, and Recordkeeping tools were presented to OSHA for technical review and found acceptable/compliant.
Let TGE help you steer clear of OSHA proactively and ensure that your employees have available the necessary tools and training they need to stay safe.