MSCI Continues Call For Broad Employer Liability Protections

The Metals Service Center Institute (MSCI) last week joined a broad coalition of more than 500 organizations to ask members of Congress to pass limited liability relief for employers in the face of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. This letter is the second one MSCI and its allies have sent to federal lawmakers in the United States regarding this topic. (Click here to read a letter sent on May 27.)

The latest letter, sent on July 30 to every member of Congress, said, “COVID-19-related lawsuits and their consequent exorbitant legal costs could deter entities from reopening and could ultimately cripple businesses, educational institutions, and non-profit organizations both large and small. Furthermore, absent the proposed liability protections, many frontline healthcare workers and facilities, as well as manufacturers of critical personal protective equipment, would be punished for their efforts in the form of costly lawsuits.” Click here to read the full letter.

MSCI member company leaders and employees who are interested in making their voices heard on this issue can do so by using this toolkit offered by the National Association of Manufacturers to call their U.S. senators and representatives or they can click here to send an email to lawmakers.

As noted in a separate Connecting the Dots story this week, the U.S. Senate has introduced legislation that includes liability protections.

Specifically, that piece of legislation would:

• Provide temporary lawsuit protections for businesses, schools, colleges, and charities that follow public health guidelines, with exceptions for gross negligence and willful misconduct;
• Protect healthcare workers and medical facilities from needless lawsuits;
• Include manufacturers of personal protection equipment and other COVID-related products;
• Provide a national baseline of liability protection without impacting states’ abilities to provide stronger protections.
• Ensure employers who follow applicable government guidelines aren’t subject to unfair federal labor and employment lawsuits and enforcement actions.