Employer Liability for 'Take-Home' COVID-19

Workplace exposure to SARS-CoV-2 has been a source of morbidity and mortality from COVID-19, especially for “essential workers,” such as those employed in health care and meatpacking. Many family members of these workers also have become infected and died. If the employee’s exposure was the result of the employer’s negligence, the family member or the family member’s estate might be able to recover from the employer using the “take-home” liability theory first developed in asbestos cases. This article discusses the elements of these cases and how they relate to workers’ compensation, OSHA enforcement, and other aspects of workplace safety and health protections.

Keywords: COVID-19, Employer liability, Essential workers, Immunity, Negligence, OSHA, SARS-CoV-2, Take-home exposure, Workers’ compensation

JEL Classification: K31, K32

Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation

Rothstein, Mark A. and Irzyk, Julia, Employer Liability for 'Take-Home' COVID-19 (December 4, 2020). Forthcoming, 49 J.L. Med. and Ethics (1):__(2021), University of Louisville School of Law Legal Studies Research Paper Series No. 2021-2, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3743021 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3743021