Isabel Smrstik

Associate Editor

Loyola University Chicago School of Law, JD 2027

Employee safety is a top priority for all employers. However, as the world continues to embrace remote work, employers must navigate employee safety in a new manner. Both state and federal agencies have adapted regulations to ensure remote workers are entitled to a safe working environment, which means expanded responsibility for employers. Employers now need to maintain safe work environments within the employee’s homes or face the consequences like workers’ compensation penalties and violations of the Occupational Safety and Health Act.

Worker safety protections at state and federal levels

Workers’ compensation are state mandated programs that provide financial support to employees who are injured on the job or develop an occupational disease. Each jurisdiction has different requirements for which employers need workers’ compensation insurance. In Illinois, even if an employer only has one part-time employee, they must have workers’ compensation insurance. It is estimated that approximately 91% of employees in Illinois are covered by their employers insurance. However, in Georgia the employer must have workers’ compensation insurance coverage only if they have three or more employees in regular service. The financial support provided by workers’ compensation is not just for lost wages, but also includes any medical expenses that are required to treat the injuries and/or illnesses from work-related activities.

There are plenty of injuries that can happen from remote work. These issues include mental health problems from working in isolation, musculoskeletal issues from sitting for extended periods of time, and accidents from handling work equipment at home like electrical burns from frayed power cords. Most states also have a personal comfort doctrine, which expands workers’ compensation coverage to include employees injured while on break from work. The general rule for workers’ compensation claims is that they are to be filed where the incident or injury occurs. This presents potential challenges for remote workers, as their work environment is not where their employer is located. The difficulty also expands to employers, as they may have to navigate multiple insurance carriers and state workers’ compensation programs, depending on how widespread their workforce is. If an employer conducts any business within Illinois, that employer must maintain a workers’ compensation policy that includes Illinois coverage.

In Illinois, failing to provide adequate workers’ compensation insurance to employees, employers open themselves up to a number of penalties. The main penalty for employers who knowingly and willingly fail to obtain workers’ compensation insurance is a fine of $500.00 for every day of non-compliance, with a minimum fine of $10,000. These fines contribute to the Injured Workers Benefit Fund which was created in 2005. This fund pays benefits to injured employees whose employers either do not have workers’ compensation insurance or have failed to pay.

In addition to state-based workers’ compensation programs, there are federal regulations governing employee safety. In 1970, the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSH Act) was passed to help “assure safe and healthful working conditions for working men and women; by authorizing enforcement of the standards under the act. The standards within the OSH Act cover various parts of the work environment like standard 1910.25(b)(3) which mandates stairs have uniform riser heights and tread depths between landings or standard 1910.38(b) which describes the exception for oral emergency action plans. Employers must comply with all applicable standards as well as the General Duty Clause of the OSH Act, which requires employers to keep their workplace free of serious recognized hazards.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is a federal agency within the United States Department of Labor. OSHA mandates that all employers, including those who allow employees to “work at home” are still responsible for complying with the OSH Act.  Employers who violate the OSH Act are subject to monetary sanctions, like a $7,000penalty for each serious violation which can include failure to provide safe exit routes and failure to provide suitable hearing protection. There is also risk of criminal penalties for employers who willfully violate the OSH Act and that violation causes death to an employee, the employer can face imprisonment up to six months.

Maintaining safe work environments from a distance

There are numerous ways to encourage workplace safety within one’s home. OSHA provides free informative videos, interactive lessons, and publications on a wide variety of topics. The information is specifically designed to be accessibleto all employees to encourage participation so resources are offered in multiple languages, and OSHA has designed specific educational material for age groups including minors. The material provided by OSHA is organized by type of work and workplace so employers can distribute safety material relevant to their employees. Material relevant to remote workers may include lessons on extended or irregular shifts, occupational noise exposure, and workplace stress, By enforcing safe workplaces, it not only ensures employers are complying with regulations, but also reinforces good habits that can protect employees from suffering workplace injuries. There is documented evidence from the American Journal of Public Health that workplace safety training that requires active participation, like online interactive lessons, reduces accidents, illnesses, and injuries suffered by employees in the workplace. The use of workplace safety trainings and videos also serve as documentation of the employer’s efforts to enforce a safe work environment, which is important in case of inspection or injuries.

Having employees work remotely carries extreme benefits including lower overhead costs on office space and employee retention. There is still an important duty on the employer to maintain a safe work environment for all employees no matter where the work is. Failure to preserve a safe work environment can manifest itself into problems at the state level, like workers’ compensation claims, and federal level, violations of the OSH Act. The best way to avoid these compliance concerns is to encourage workplace safety through educating employees on safety hazards and potential injuries.