NY to set workplace safety standards for airborne diseases
State regulators in New York will soon draft rules that will require employers to protect workers from airborne infectious disease.
A new state law tasks state labor and health officials with coming up with minimum workplace standards around things like the availability of personal protective equipment, social distancing and quarantine requirements. Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed the bill into law last week.
Employers in New York will have to come up with safety plans that comply with the yet-to-be written state standards and provide them to workers. Employers who don’t comply could face fines. Workers could also sue for up to $20,000 from employers who don’t follow safety standards or retaliate against workers for reporting non-compliance.