Issue link: http://palletcentral.uberflip.com/i/739842
palletcentral.com PalletCentral • September-October 2016 25 mosquito bites and direct contact with infectious blood and bodily fluids (e.g., first aid providers and health care workers), and also on how to protect themselves. Workers who are, or may become pregnant – or whose sexual partners may become pregnant – should be trained on the modes of transmission and the link to birth defects. If occupational exposure and transmission occurs, and no mitigating action was taken to reduce exposure to the extent feasible, employers could have liability for worker's compensation damage claims, or personal injury tort claims, in addition to possible OSHA citations. Those who could come in contact with infectious bodily fluids may need specialized personal protective equipment and should follow the protocols in OSHA's Bloodborne Pathogens standard ("BBP," 29 CFR 1910.1030). Outdoor workers clearly are also at a heightened risk of exposure, and OSHA recommends the following employer actions: • Inform workers about their risks of exposure through mosquito bites and train them how to protect themselves (check the CDC Zika website to track Zika-affected areas at www.cdc.gov/zika); • Provide insect repellants and encourage their use in accordance with manufacturer's recommendations, including how to properly combine the use of repellant and sunscreen; • Provide workers with clothing that covers their hands, arms, legs and other exposed skin, and consider providing hats with mosquito netting to protect the face and neck (being mindful of conflicting hardhat requirements that take precedence); • Encourage warm-weather workers to wear light-weight loose- fitting clothing that will be a barrier to mosquitos (but watch out for loose clothing that could become entangled in moving machine parts or power tools), provide workers with sufficient shade, water and rest, and monitor them for heat illness symptoms; • Eliminate sources of standing water (e.g., tires, buckets, wheelbarrows, cans and bottles) whenever possible to reduce mosquito breeding, and train workers about the importance of getting rid of standing water where mosquitos can proliferate at the worksite; and, • Consider reassigning workers who are or may become pregnant, or male workers whose partners may become pregnant, by reassigning them to indoor tasks during the outbreak (but be careful not to violate any workers' rights under the Pregnancy Discrimination Act provisions of the Civil Rights Act). Employers have a key educational role to play in combatting what may turn into a critical public health emergency in the near future. Therefore, workers should be urged to monitor for symptoms and to seek prompt medical attention if there are concerns about disease infection. If a worker does become infected, they should be urged to rest, drink fluids, take fever and pain reducing medications, and to speak with a health care professional before taking any prescription drugs. In addition, to prevent transmission via sexual contact, condom use or abstinence are encouraged by the CDC. If the exposure occurs OSHA urges employers to protect workers from getting mosquito bites, given that there is no currently approved Zika vaccine and no specific treatment for infected workers.