COMMENTARY: Hispanic businesses need liability protection

As COVID-19 cases rise here and across Nevada, businesses are doing their best to adapt. And with almost half of the COVID-19 cases in the state affecting the Hispanic community, Latino business owners are acutely aware of the need to prioritize health and safety and keep the virus under control.

Our businesses are rising to the challenge, investing significantly in safety measures to keep operations compliant with ever-changing guidelines and ensure facilities remain safe for workers and customers alike. As they continue to produce automobiles, PPE, food and medicines, these businesses have implemented strict and intensive cleaning procedures, required masks and protective gear, reorganized shop floors to comply with social distancing guidelines and much more — all so that our communities have the products and supplies that they need.

But despite their efforts, trial lawyers see the uncertainty COVID-19 has created as an opportunity to cash in. These lawsuits will only exacerbate the uncertainty facing our customers, our workers and the economy.

Before COVID-19, business owners could rightly be held liable if they engaged in negligent conduct — for example, allowing faulty equipment, poorly maintained facilities or other occupational hazards to exist in the workplace. In today’s pandemic reality, it’s far more difficult to discern whether a COVID-19 case resulted from a business’s misconduct or from community spread. And the coronavirus may still spread even if a business has done everything right.

Politicians should intervene and establish liability protections that guard honest businesses from opportunistic lawsuits that exploit the unique circumstances of the pandemic. Even the most baseless of these lawsuits costs time and money to fight, ultimately leaving businesses with two choices — reach a settlement or arm up with lawyers and go to court. Either option is costly and pulls resources from the critical work these businesses are doing for their communities.

It’s especially dangerous for small businesses that don’t have dedicated legal teams or cash to spare. And this wave of lawsuits will certainly jeopardize jobs in Las Vegas at this precarious time when unemployment remains a serious concern.

Thankfully, Congress has an opportunity to correct this legal imbalance. The National Association of Manufacturers has laid out liability policy recommendations Congress should consider as it continues to address the impacts of COVID-19. By adopting these measures, essential businesses would have the certainty and legal framework they need to continue leading our economic recovery.

We don’t want and are not saying that businesses should get a free pass if they are reckless and refuse to take smart steps to keep their employees and customers safe from COVID-19 — employee health, safety and security is of the utmost priority. We are simply asking lawmakers to recognize the difficult, uncertain situation that many critical industries face. Nevada’s representatives in Congress should do everything in their power to make these protections a reality.

About 37 percent of Las Vegas businesses are Hispanic-owned, and before the pandemic that number was growing. These businesses have proven to be extremely resilient — at least until now. We must create an environment in which they can recover — safely and responsibly — and grow again.

COVID-related liability protections are important steps toward this goal for Las Vegas and the rest of the country.

Peter Guzman is president of the Latin Chamber of Commerce in Las Vegas.