Oregon charged a $ 126,749 fine at a Salem gym that has repeatedly refused to close in accordance with coronavirus restrictions, the largest fine the state has issued for coronavirus violations in the workplace so far.
Oregon Occupational Health and Safety (Oregon OSHA) announced on Tuesday that it had issued the fine to Capitol Racquet Sports for deliberately refusing to comply with state health orders at one of its Courthouse Club Fitness locations in Salem.
The Courthouse Club did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tuesday. The academy will have 30 days to decide whether to appeal the fine. He appealed previous sanctions.
Gymnasiums in counties considered “extreme risk” for the spread of COVID-19 have not been allowed to conduct internal operations since late November under Governor Kate Brown’s new framework for COVID-19 restrictions. The new regulations came after Brown ordered gyms to shut down completely for two weeks in early November, in an effort to slow the spread of the virus.
Oregon OSHA issued Courthouse Club Fitness four penalties, totaling $ 90,000 in November to continue operating its facilities during Brown’s two-week freeze. The state issued hefty fines after the academy continued to operate, even after the Oregon OSHA issued Red Notices that require companies to stop all actions that violate public safety rules. The state issued quotes at four Courthouse Club facilities and the company appealed them all.
Oregon OSHA conducted another inspection at one of the same four facilities on December 9 in response to several complaints and again concluded that Courthouse Club Fitness was deliberately ignoring public health orders and state warnings to close the facility. This led the agency to issue the academy the maximum fine allowed.
However, it is not clear whether the state can or will force the academy to close.
“We understand that this employer is trying to do a number of things to keep employees safe without hanging up, but that does not allow them to override the judgment of public health officials,” said Michael Wood, Oregon OSHA administrator, in a statement.
While a handful of vocal opponents made headlines for refusing to follow state public health orders, the vast majority of companies appear to be complying with Oregon’s restrictions and closing orders.
During the pandemic, Oregon OSHA also rarely issued fines and quotes to companies that did not comply with coronavirus restrictions, focusing on education.
Since the start of the pandemic, Oregon OSHA has issued 12 quotes to employers for deliberately disregarding COVID-19 health restrictions. In eight of these cases, employers continued to disregard these restrictions, even after receiving Red Notices.
“Our expectation is that employers will follow well-founded health regulations, which are aimed directly at protecting workers from genuine danger,” said Wood. “And while we have been able to use involvement and education to resolve most COVID-19 complaints involving employers, we will also continue to use our application tools as needed.”
– Jamie Goldberg | [email protected] | @jamiebgoldberg