HERO Act Workplace Safety Committee Proposed Regulations Published

On Dec. 22, 2021, the New York State Department of Labor (DOL) issued a notice of proposed rulemaking relative to the Workplace Safety Committee required under the HERO Act. The proposed regulations address the establishment and composition of the Committee as well as permissible actions by the Committee, such as rules and procedures, training, and meetings. The regulations also include employer obligations and define critical terms. There is a public hearing scheduled for Feb. 9, 2022, and public comments are allowed until five days after the last scheduled hearing.

As a reminder, private employers that employ 10 or more employees are covered under the HERO Act. While some aspects of the HERO Act did not apply to those that followed the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) COVID-19 Healthcare Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS), the requirement that employers allow employees “to establish and administer a joint labor-management workplace safety committee” at each worksite took effect for all private employers with 10 or more employees on Nov. 1, 2021. LeadingAge NY has confirmed with our counsel, Hinman Straub, that county- or State-run entities or other government-run organizations are not included in this requirement.

Hinman Straub is drafting a memo, which will provide members with more details shortly.

Contact: Diane Darbyshire, ddarbyshire@leadingageny.org, 518-867-8828