By Rob Wolff The Supreme Court and Title VII’s expansive view of “religion” is well illustrated by Chenzira v. Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, in which an Ohio federal court denied a motion to dismiss a hospital worker’s claim that her termination for refusing to have a mandatory flu vaccination because she was a vegan was… Continue Reading
Category Archives: Workplace Safety
Subscribe to Workplace Safety RSS FeedOSHA to Renew Focus on Hazards in Nursing and Residential Care Facilities
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has announced a new National Emphasis Program (NEP) (pdf) that sets forth the policies and procedures for targeting and addressing occupational illnesses and injuries most commonly experienced in nursing and residential care facilities. As described in the NEP, these hazards include ergonomic stressors relating to resident handling; exposure… Continue Reading
Mandatory Flu Vaccinations – Healthcare Employers Stuck in the Middle
By Ben Huggett As in so many other situations, healthcare employers are faced with a number of differing and potentially conflicting government directives and public policy pressures when it comes to mandatory vaccination programs for their employees. On February 8, 2012, the Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) National Vaccine Advisory Committee (NVAC) voted 12-2… Continue Reading
New California Bill Lifts Hospital’s Obligations Beyond ADA
By Rob Wolff California’s Governor has just signed a bill (AB 1136) requiring hospitals in his state to implement a patient handling policy that includes “lift teams” trained in moving patients with appropriate equipment. Among other things, the law provides that “employer[s] shall maintain a safe patient handling policy at all times for all patient… Continue Reading
Healthcare Workers Again Challenge Mandatory Flu Vaccinations
Echoing last year’s challenges of mandatory flu vaccinations for healthcare workers, a healthcare employee has filed a putative class action against AnMed Health, a network of hospitals and healthcare facilities in South Carolina, claiming that mandatory flu vaccination requirements constitute an unreasonable invasion of privacy under that state’s constitution and common law. AnMed Health’s Influenza… Continue Reading
Hospital May Require Disabled Nurse Satisfy Performance Standards Without Violating ADA
A hospital can require a disabled nurse to satisfy the same high performance standards that apply to nurses generally, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan held in Harrison v Spectrum Health. While a hospital, like other employers, must provide reasonable accommodations to enable employees with disabilities to perform essential job functions,… Continue Reading
Senate Subcommittee Hearing Focuses on Safe Patient Handling and Lifting Standards
On Tuesday, the Senate Subcommittee on Employment and Workplace Safety held a hearing to assess the need for safe patient handling and lifting standards. A number of panel members testified that health care workers experience a relatively excessive rate of musculoskeletal injuries due to manual patient handling and called for legislation and regulation to provide a… Continue Reading
OSHA’s Strategic Plan Calls for Greater Enforcement of Ergonomic Issues, Shift Away from Voluntary Protection Programs
During a recent live Q&A session, several officials from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) indicated that the agency plans to increase its enforcement efforts, including using the general duty clause to address ergonomic issues in the workplace. Participants in the chat included David Michaels, Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health,… Continue Reading