GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — Set to originally expire Wednesday, the Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration (MIOSHA) extended its COVID-19 emergency workplace safety rules for another six months.
That means many people who have been working from home over the past year will likely continue to do so for some time. These rules require employers to prohibit in-person work when it is feasible to do it remotely.
"When we look at the state of Michigan right now, we certainly see huge positivity rates and cases going up incredibly fast," said Sean Egan, the director of COVID-19 Workplace Safety. "So, we're not in a position right now where it makes sense to start congregating people together in the workplace."
These rules, however, do a lot more than just limit in-person work. They also require employers to create a preparedness and response plan, establish workplace COVID-19 mitigation procedures for cleaning and sick employees and more. To see a full list of these measures, click this link for the state's fact sheet.
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer teased the extension during a press conference Monday. However, she said not being able to go to the office for another six months is "not the case."
"By law, we have to have to give this second extension so we have some of the tools," said Whitmer. "We are working with the business community, working with labor, public health experts to promulgate what that back to work cadence looks like. But at this juncture, with our high positivity numbers, it’s really important that we extend for another six months, so we have the ability to work through what these protocols look like and get people back into the workplace when it is safe to do so with the right protocols."
These rules can be modified or withdrawn at any time in response to changes in the COVID-19 outbreak in Michigan. Egan said the department is working with many groups, putting together a phased-in return plan.
According to data reported by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS), between September 3, 2020 and April 1, 2021, there were 670 outbreaks reported by local health departments in manufacturing and construction. There were 332 in office settings, 250 in restaurants and bars, 374 in retail and 52 in personal care services.
Meanwhile, there is opposition to the extension by many Chambers of Commerce in the state. Rick Baker, the president and CEO of Grand Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce, said they were "quite disappointed" when they heard the news of the extension.
"We feel like businesses have invested in their facilities to make them safe for their employees," said Baker. "We've learned a lot in the year. We're vaccinating people. And so, the six month extension seems an extreme action to us."
While the rules can change over time, Baker said he hopes they do. However, there is frustration in that as well, because he said employers need the stability and predictably to operate. They are then left with questions about what further infrastructure investments need to be made, and which employees can return to the office.
Baker also stressed the importance of the office culture to the overall economy of downtown Grand Rapids, saying tens of thousands of people head into the city center for work. Without that foot traffic for the past year, it has had an impact on restaurants, gift shops, coffee shops and other small businesses in the area.
"Sometimes it's forgotten that we are sitting in the furniture manufacturing capital of the world, we are in office furniture," said Baker. "And our manufacturers here have developed products, they have developed ways to design and layout offices that will be safe and provide social distancing for employers and their employees. And so, we're the experts in this area, and we're one of the few, if maybe the only state left, that has our offices closed."
However, Egan said due to the high case and positivity rate of COVID-19 in Michigan right now, employers should avoid congregating. Vaccinations are catching up, but he said we still have a long way to go. Yet, he suggested employers start planning for a time when more employees could return to the office.
"Absolutely the other protocols would need to be in place," said Egan. "I think we really need to encourage employers to fully engage in getting employees vaccinated, whatever that might mean. We're going to have some recommendations around that coming from our workgroup because that's really our ticket out of the crisis. That's what's going to make our workplaces more safe."
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