When Occupational Safety and Health Administration officials ruled in January that the home workplace was subject to the same safety regulations that govern steels mills and construction sites, business owners across the nation threw up their arms in confusion about how this would affect the 19 million Americans who report to work each day via their modems.
The announcement, however, was short-lived. One day after the advisory hit the pages of the Washington Post, Labor Secretary Alexis Herman withdrew the opinion, and an OSHA spokesman conceded that modifications to the existing law may be necessary in light of the growth of the virtual workplace.
Within four weeks, the Labor Department ’fessed up to its mistake, saying, “OSHA will not hold employers liable for work activities in the employees’ home offices. The Occupational Health and Safety Act does not apply to an employee’s house or furnishings.”
But while the decision is apparently final as far as the Labor Department is concerned, telecommuting was shoved onto center stage. Even if your company is not liable for what happens in an employee’s home office under OSHA’s watchful eye, attorney Mark Katz of Cleveland’s Ulmer & Berne LLP says business owners should still consider reducing the risk associated with telecommuting.
One method, says Katz, a former OSHA attorney, is to hire employees who work exclusively from home on a free-lance basis to avoid the financial risks and responsibilities associated with injuries incurred on the job.
“Instead of establishing an everyday relationship, maybe you should establish an independent contractor relationship,” he says. “This is being done and it’s one way to avoid the whole home office issue altogether.”
In many situations, though, allowing employees to work at home is a temporary arrangement after the birth of a child. In these cases, Katz says business owners may rest a little better knowing that they will not face OSHA fines for hazardous working conditions in a home office.
The real risk of at-home workers comes not from OSHA, but from the huge expense of workers’ compensation claims, which must be paid to employees injured on the job regardless of whether they work from home or at the office.
“OSHA will be the least of your problems if there is an injury in the home,” Katz says. ‘The maximum penalty for (an OSHA) violation is $7,000, while workers’ compensation will cost you a heck of a lot more.”
How to reach: Ulmer & Berne LLP, (216) 621-8400
Jim Vickers ([email protected]) is an associate editor at SBN.
