The New York State Department of Labor (NYSDOL) has issued its model Health and Essential Rights (HERO) Act plans for all employers for protecting workers from airborne infectious diseases. It has also issued the NYSDOL regulatory standard to be followed for protecting workers from airborne infectious diseases. The plan only kicks in when the New York State Commissioner of Health has designated an airborne infectious disease as a highly contagious communicable disease that presents a serious risk of harm to public health. Currently, while employers must adopt plans as required by the law, no designation has been made by the Commissioner of Health and plans are not required to be in effect. Important dates are:

August 6, 2021: Within 30 days of the NYSDOL’s publication, employers must either adopt the model protocol applicable to their industry or create their own airborne disease prevention plan that meets or exceeds the minimum requirements of the law.
September 5, 2021: Within 60 days of the NYSDOL’s publication, employers must provide the adopted or equally stringent safety protocols to their employees. 

FULL DETAILS