Categories: Health and Safety

Potential Legal Consequences of Ignoring COVID-19 Safety Measures

Back in March, when the coronavirus pandemic was still new, we published a blog article warning about the importance of following COVID-19 regulations and safety standards created by the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). A big concern for employers struggling to survive the pandemic economy has been liability due to employees’ exposures to the coronavirus. Several states have passed legislation seeking to limit COVID-19 liability for employers, including Michigan, Georgia, Iowa, Kansas, Mississippi, Nevada, Tennessee and more. Congressional pursuits for Federal legislation aiming to shield businesses from pandemic-related lawsuits have struggled, and were recently dropped from inclusion in the second bipartisan COVID-19 relief package anticipated to be passed in the near future. Even in states with related indemnity laws, employers can still generally be held legally responsible if they knowingly ignore safety measures and an employee becomes ill or dies of COVID-19.

Avoid Lawsuits by Following Guidelines

COVID-19 needs to be taken seriously in order to protect employees and their families — a lesson currently being learned the hard way by Tyson Foods. Recently, a man working at a Tyson pork plant in Storm Lake, IA fell ill and eventually passed away because of the virus. The man’s family is currently suing Tyson Foods, stating:

“Tyson either failed to follow those recommendations or did not follow them fully. Everhard continued to work in close proximity to other workers, the suit said, and he wasn’t provided proper protective gear. Other barriers, training and sanitizing were inadequate . . . It is not the first suit filed against Tyson in Iowa. The families of three workers who had worked at the company’s Waterloo, Iowa, plant and died of COVID-19 sued the company in November.”

While the lawsuit is ongoing, the fact remains that implementing and maintaining comprehensive COVID-19 safety precautions is in your business’ best interests. It’s easier to follow OSHA and CDC guidelines than it is to deal with the loss of valued employees and a diminished reputation in the eyes of the public.

Aftermath’s COVID-19 Disinfection Program is By Your Side When You Need it Most

Aftermath Services has been dedicated to providing the most professional, compassionate and discreet 24/7 coronavirus disinfection services since the beginning of the pandemic. Not only are our state-of-the-art proprietary chemicals approved by the EPA for efficacy against Sars-CoV-2, we prove it by using verifiable surface testing, which allows us to detect the presence of the virus at a molecular level. We are proud to have hospital-level standards of cleanliness. If we find that the virus is still present after one round of disinfection, we do it over again until its presence is completely eradicated.

Having regular professional coronavirus cleaning procedures is crucial to keep your employees and their families safe, and your business out of legal liability. Learn more about our services here or call 877-698-6169 for immediate assistance.