Las Vegas, NV July 02, 2020
In a continued
effort to protect Nevada’s workers and educate businesses on the latest
requirements so that Nevada can stay safe and stay open, the Division of
Industrial Relations Occupation Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has increased
in-field inspection activities.
Since the Governor’s
Declaration of Emergency Directive 024 went into effect on June 26, the
Division of Industrial Relations has conducted 652 initial field observations. During
these initial field observations, businesses that are not in compliance are
provided a written notice and request for voluntary compliance. Of the 347
businesses observed on July 1, 79.8 percent were in compliance with the
mandate. Businesses in northern Nevada have a cumulative compliance rate of
84.3 percent, while businesses in southern Nevada were found to have a 75
percent compliance rate.
Under the
directive, employers must:
- Provide
face coverings for employees assigned to serving the public and require these
employees to wear the face coverings;
- Require
employees to wear a face covering in any area where food is prepared or
packaged;
- Mandate
the use of face coverings by patrons, customers, patients, and clients and will
notify them of this requirement prior to entry into the establishment.
Observations
have been conducted in gaming establishments, bars, gyms, hair and nail salons,
automobile sales and maintenance establishments, grocery stores, home
improvement stores, clothing stores and other locations where large groups of
people may be congregating for longer periods of time, which can lead to a
heightened risk of spreading COVID-19.
If
non-compliance is found during an initial observation, the business is provided
a written notice and request for voluntary compliance and a follow up visit by
Nevada OSHA officials will be conducted. If the employer is still not complaint
and a violation is found, a notice of citation and penalty will be issued. The
maximum penalty of $134,940 can be assessed to an employer that willfully
violates the provisions of the directive. If the
employer is observed to be in compliance during the follow up visit, the inspection
will be closed with no further action necessary.
Additionally,
Nevada OSHA continues to conduct ongoing compliance enforcement activity in
response to complaints and referrals received by their offices related to Updated
Nevada OSHA Guidance for Businesses Operating in Phase 2 of Nevada United:
Roadmap to Recovery Plan published on June 26. This guidance contains
employer requirements for encouraging proper hand hygiene, cleaning and
disinfection, and social distancing. A copy of the guidance can be found on the
Division of Industrial Relations website at http://dir.nv.gov/uploadedFiles/dirnvgov/content/home/features/OSHA%20Ltr%20Phase%20II%20Face%20Coverings%206-26-20A.pdf.
Complaints can be filed
with Nevada OSHA by calling (702)
486-9020 in southern Nevada and (775) 688-3700 in northern Nevada. Complaints can also be filed online at https://www.osha.gov/pls/osha7/eComplaintForm.html.
About
the Division of Industrial Relations:
The Nevada
Division of Industrial Relations (DIR) is the principal regulatory agency
responsible for workplace safety and worker protections in the state of
Nevada. Comprised of five sections –Occupational Safety and Health
Administration, Workers’ Compensation Section, Mechanical Compliance Section,
Mine Safety and Training Section, and the Safety Consultation and Training
Section – DIR works to protect Nevada’s working men and women and provides a
broad scope of training and support to the regulated community. For more
information please visit http://dir.nv.gov.
About
Nevada OSHA:
Nevada OSHA
operates as an approved state program as defined by section 18 of the
Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 and is required by the Act to
operate in a manner that is at least as effective as the federal OSHA
enforcement program. Operating out of district offices in Las Vegas and
Reno, Nevada OSHA conducts inspections and investigations intended to identify
hazardous conditions which could harm Nevada’s workers and enforces state and
federal laws protecting the state’s workers. From July 2018 to June 2019,
Nevada OSHA conducted over 1,060 inspections, issuing an average of 1.4 serious
violations per inspection. The Nevada State Plan, at the time of publication of
this media release, is funded by a grant of $1,486,600 federal funds, which
constitutes 50 percent of the State Plan budget. Fifty percent, or $1,486,600
of the State Plan budget, is financed through non-governmental sources. For
more information visit http://dir.nv.gov/OSHA/home.
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