News Release
Central New Jersey facility to pay $273K, take corrective actions to resolve COVID-related respirator violations
Date of action:
May 31, 2022
Type of action:
Names of defendants:
Lakewood Resource and Referral Center Inc., operating as the Center for Education, Medicine and Dentistry in Lakewood, NJ
Allegations:
The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited CHEMED in July 2021 for requiring temporary nurses to wear respirators while performing COVID testing without first medically evaluating their ability to use the respirators and performing fit testing. OSHA proposed $273,064 in penalties. In 2020, the agency cited CHEMED for similar violations with respect to its own direct employees. CHEMED contested the citations and penalties to the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.
Resolution:
CHEMED has agreed to pay the full proposed penalties of $273,064 for two repeated violations, abate the cited hazards, develop and implement a safety and health management system, and continue to comply with OSHA’s healthcare emergency temporary standard.
Court:
U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission
Docket Number:
21-0848
Quotes:
"Failing to evaluate employees’ ability to use respirators, and to test to ensure the respirators fit properly, exposes employees to potentially hazardous conditions. This settlement commits this employer to correcting those violations and enhancing its safeguards for employees,” said OSHA Regional Administrator Richard Mendelson in New York.
“The U.S. Department of Labor is committed to pursuing appropriate legal remedies to protect employees against hazards and ensure proper remediation of violations,” said Regional Solicitor of Labor Jeffrey S. Rogoff in New York.
Background:
OSHA’s Marlton, New Jersey, area office conducted the investigation and issued the citations. The regional Office of the Solicitor in New York litigated the case for OSHA.
