Pago Pago, AMERICAN SAMOA — The federal Occupational Safety and Health Act “prohibits employers from taking disciplinary action or in any other way discriminating against an employee for engaging in various occupational safety and health activities,” said a U.S Labor Department spokesperson.

“For example, if an employer discriminates against employees for raising a reasonable concern about infection control related to COVID-19 to the employer,” the spokesperson said in response to Samoa News queries, if there is federal law that protects an employee from being suspended or fired by an employer, if the employee is afraid of going to work and being infected by others at the workplace.

The queries from workers in both the public and private sector were raised with Samoa News late last week as the number of positive COVID-19 cases exceeded 2,000 with one death at the time.

Workers, who contacted Samoa News also asked if there is a federal law protecting employees, whose home-state — in our case Territory — is under the COVID-19 emergency declaration.

Among the workers who raised the issue, are two ASG employees, who are considered front-line workers, who are afraid of going to their place of employment where co-workers have tested positive. Their concerns are of being infected and spreading it to family members — especially young children not eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine.

A family member of an officer at the Territorial Correctional Facility said, “we have serious concerns with the virus spreading among inmates at TCF” as reported by the news media recently and the family of the TCF officer  — who is fully vaccinated with a booster shot —is concerned with “bringing the virus to our home with children and elders.”

The USDOL spokesperson tells Samoa News that the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has been working to help protect workers from exposure to the coronavirus since the beginning of the pandemic, and will continue to do so until the risk to workers is eliminated.

“While we work towards a permanent regulatory solution, employers must continue to comply with their obligations under the General Duty Clause, the Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and Respiratory Protection Standards, as well as other applicable OSHA standards to protect their employees against the hazard of COVID-19 in the workplace,” the spokesperson said.

And OSHA is also currently working on updating its guidance on Mitigating and Preventing the Spread of COVID-19 in the Workplace to ensure that workers have the necessary protection they need and to keep them safe from COVID-19, according to the spokesperson.

(More information on OHSA including COVID-19 guidance and issues online at: www.osha.gov)