Seyfarth Synopsis: On March 9, 2018, the California Office of Administrative Law approved the new regulation that will require hotels and other lodging establishments (such as resorts and bed and breakfast inns) to implement new requirements to protect employees who perform housekeeping tasks from any "musculoskeletal injury." The regulation will take effect on July 1, 2018.
We previously blogged on the new regulation adopted by the Cal/OSHA Standards Board (OSHSB) on January 18, 2018. The new regulation–"Hotel Housekeeping Musculoskeletal Injury Prevention"–is intended to address a workplace hazard confronted by housekeepers, namely, a "musculoskeletal injury," which is defined as "acute injury or cumulative trauma of a muscle, tendon, ligament, bursa, peripheral nerve, joint, bone, spinal disc or blood vessel."
The regulation was petitioned for by the labor union UNITE HERE and contains several union-friendly provisions. The regulation will take effect on July 1, 2018.
Substantially, under the new rules California hotel and other lodging establishments industry employers will be required to update their written Injury and Illness Prevention Plan (IIPP) to incorporate the following:
- Must have a Musculoskeletal Injury Prevention Program (MIPP) in addition to the IIPP. The MIPP may be a standalone policy or incorporated into the IIPP.
- The MIPP must be "readily accessible" to employees to review during their work shift. An electronic copy is sufficient if there are "no barriers to employee access" as a result. No such requirement exists for IIPPs.
- By October 1, 2018, effected employers must complete an initial worksite evaluation to identify and address potential injury risks to housekeepers. This worksite evaluation as well as subsequent evaluations (at least annually) "shall include an effective means of involving housekeepers and their union representative in designing and conducting the worksite evaluation."
- The MIPP's procedures for investigating musculoskeletal injuries to a housekeeper must allow for input from the housekeeper's union representative as to whether any measures, procedures, or tools would have prevented the injury.
- Records of worksite evaluations and other records required by the MIPP must be made available to a Cal/OSHA inspector within 72 hours of a request. There is no 72-hour deadline under the IIPP regulation.
California hotel and other lodging establishments industry employers now have until October 1, 2018, to roll-out their Musculoskeletal Injury Prevention Programs. These MIPPs must pass the muster of Cal/OSHA inspectors, including the ability to provide records of worksite evaluations and other records required by the MIPP to Cal/OSHA within 72 hours of a request.
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