South Lake Public Schools Cited For Coronavirus Violations: State

ST. CLAIR SHORES, MI — A school district in St. Clair Shores has been cited by the state of Michigan and faces a nearly $10,000 fine for several violations of state coronavirus rules, according to state documents released Friday.

South Lake Public Schools was fined $4,900 for violations of the COVID-19 workplace safety requirements for not developing an infectious disease preparedness and response plan that can guide protective actions against COVID-19, not providing COVID-19 training to employees and not conducting daily in-person or virtual health checks of employees before they entered the facility, according to state documents.

The district was also fined $4,900 for not having a written hazard communication program developed, the state reported. The findings came following a state inspection that stemmed from an employee complaint, the state said.

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The citations were issued in December following inspections that took place in September, according to the state.

Patch has reached out to the school district for comment but has not received a response.

Read More: Whitmer Wants Michigan K-12 Schools Open By March 1

The state's announcement of the citations comes the same day Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer announced that she was hopeful all K-12 schools in Michigan would offer the option for students to return to in-person instruction by March.

She noted during a news conference announcing her goal that students would only be able to do so with strict safety measures, such as wearing masks and social distancing.

"The value of in-person learning for our kids is immeasurable," Whitmer said. "We must do everything we can to help our kids get a great education they need, and to do so safely."

Michigan has reported a total of 516,376 cases of the coronavirus and 13,132 COVID-19. As of last week, more than 363,000 people in the state had recovered from the illness, according to state health officials.

The South Lake Schools District was one of eight businesses recently cited by the state for COVID-19 rule violations. The Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration recently inspected and issued COVID-19 emergency rule or general duty citations to eight different workplaces with violations for failing to protect workers and take safety precautions, the state said. An emergency rule citation carries a fine of up to $7,000.

The state said the MIOSHA general duty clause requires an employer to provide a workplace that is free from recognized hazards that are causing, or are likely to cause, death or serious physical harm to the employee. A general duty clause citation carries a fine of up to $7,000.

The cited employers have 15 working days from receipt of the MIOSHA citations to contest the violations and penalties, the state said. Citations include suggestions to fix hazards to protect employees. Employers must provide proof to MIOSHA that abatement has been completed.

According to the state, a cited employer may choose to enter into a Penalty Reduction Agreement with MIOSHA and agree to abate noted hazards by the abatement date provided within the citation and will receive a 50 percent reduction in penalties. By entering into the Agreement an employer must also agree to not seek an appeal.