Sherman & Howard Labor & Employment lawyer Patrick Miller was quoted by Law Week Colorado in an article about the challenges employers face in dealing with the Coronavirus outbreak. The article, “When It Comes to Pandemics, Don’t Panic – Plan for It,” calls attention to a number of issues impacting employers as they try to ensure worker safety, deal with disruptions to business operations, and face the possible closure of offices.

Regarding situations when an employee insists on staying home to avoid potential exposure, Patrick Miller noted that although normally a refusal to work would not be protected activity under the Occupational Safety and Health Act, if there were actual confirmed cases of the virus at the workplace, the worker’s refusal could, in fact, qualify as a protected activity under OSHA.

The full article was published in the March 9 edition of Law Week Colorado (subscription required).