OSHA: Employers Who Require Employees to Get Vaccines Must Record Vaccine Adverse Reactions as Work Related
May 14th, 2021Via: Engineering News-Record:
New guidance from the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration is causing contractors to change their COVID-19 vaccine requirements, and many of them criticize the guidance as diametrically opposed to the Biden administration’s stated desire to increase vaccinations.
On April 20, OSHA released the new guidance in the frequently asked questions section of its website for COVID-19 safety compliance.
The question asks whether an employer should record adverse reactions to COVID-19 vaccination if the employer requires the vaccine. OSHA states that if a vaccine is required, then any adverse reaction is considered work-related and therefore it must be recorded. Under OSHA rules, most employers with more than 10 employees are required to keep a record of serious work-related injuries and illnesses. Recorded injuries and illnesses become part of a contractors safety record.
This is the actual text of the new question and answer on the OSHA website:
“If I require my employees to take the COVID-19 vaccine as a condition of their employment, are adverse reactions to the vaccine recordable?
“If you require your employees to be vaccinated as a condition of employment (i.e., for work-related reasons), then any adverse reaction to the COVID-19 vaccine is work-related. The adverse reaction is recordable if it is a new case under 29 CFR 1904.6 and meets one or more of the general recording criteria in 29 CFR 1904.7.”
In response, several large contractors said they have changed or will change their vaccination policy to only recommend—not require—a vaccine.
