News
ISSA Coronavirus Government Response Update—Make Your Voice Heard With This ISSA Survey
September 14, 2020
Welcome to the ISSA Coronavirus Government Response Update. This information is intended to keep our members up to date on government affairs related to the cleaning industry and COVID-19. Today’s update touches on completing an important ISSA government affairs survey, the Safe and Healthy Workplace Tax Credit receiving support in congressional testimony, the U.S. Department of Labor fining a meat packaging company for failing to protect employees from COVID-19, and more.
Complete This ISSA Survey and Make Your Voice Heard
In order to best represent the interests of the cleaning industry at the federal, state, and local government levels, ISSA needs your feedback. Your responses to this important survey will help guide ISSA’s position on public policy issues, assist the association in advocating on behalf of the industry’s needs, as well as gauge overall member interest in ISSA’s legislative and regulatory efforts. The survey is only 12 questions long and will take approximately five minutes to complete. Thank you in advance for your participation in this crucial initiative!
In Congressional Testimony, AEI Recommends Enacting ‘Safe and Healthy Workplace Tax Credit’
In congressional testimony before a U.S. House Ways and Means subcommittee, Alex Brill of the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) recommended that Congress enact the Safe and Healthy Workplace Tax Credit. This tax credit is intended to “encourage businesses to provide testing, reconfigure workspaces, acquire personal protective equipment, and take other safety measures to reduce the risk of COVID-19,” Brill testified. “To encourage wide adoption of public health and safety measures and reduce the risk of transmission of the coronavirus, Congress should enact this proposal.” ISSA urges members to contact their elected officials using the “take action” link below and ask them to “return to the negotiating table” to pass the Safe and Healthy Workplace Tax Credit and additional, important measures as part of the next federal stimulus package.
U.S. Labor Fines Smithfield for Failing to Protect Employees from COVID-19
U.S. Department of Labor authorities have fined Smithfield Packaged Meats Corp. for failing to protect employees from exposure to coronavirus—the government’s first COVID-19-related citation for a meatpacker. The department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has proposed a penalty of US$13,494, CNN reported. The amount is the maximum allowed by law. OSHA said it cited Smithfield for failing to provide a workplace free from recognized hazards that can cause serious harm or death at its pork processing plant in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. The plant is one of the country’s largest pork processing facilities.
Large Employers, U.S. House Staff, Reject Trump’s Payroll-Tax Deferral Plan
A month after U.S. President Donald Trump unveiled his plan to give employers the option of deferring payroll taxes, no major private employer has stepped up to participate. Firms opting not to change their paycheck withholdings include Costco Wholesale Corp., the United Parcel Service, FedEx Corp., JPMorgan Chase & Co., Home Depot Inc., Wells Fargo, and CVS Health, according to CNBC. The U.S. House of Representatives also will not roll out the payroll tax deferral to its employees.
New ISSA Webinar Recording – A Government Affairs Update on the Cleaning Industry & COVID-19
Missed ISSA’s live webinar, “A Government Affairs Update on the Cleaning Industry & COVID-19?” A free recording of the webinar is now available to ISSA Plus and Premium members. In this webinar, you will learn about the status of a new federal stimulus package, including the cleaning tax credit spearheaded by ISSA, and much more.
Other links of interest
