OSHA Ramps Up Enforcement Efforts

(Published November 16, 2009)

 

This article was published in our free e-mail newsletter, Employment Law Today.

 

President Obama's fiscal year 2010 budget requested $564 million for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), which is $51 million (10%) more than it received in FY 2009. With this funding, the Labor Department plans to hire 160 new OSHA inspectors, many of whom will be bilingual to better communicate with the increasingly diverse employee population.

 

With increased funds and staffing typically comes more activity.  If the past few months are any indication of the OSHA activity to come, employers had better buckle their seatbelts because they may be in for a wild OSHA ride.

 

In addition to introducing a new program that emphasizes the importance of record-keeping and stepping up safety inspections at high-risk industries, OSHA has proposed to revamp its hazard communication standard, recommended a review of all state-administered safety programs, and issued a record-breaking fine for safety violations.
  
Record-Keeping National Emphasis Program (RK NEP), effective September 30. The new program helps OSHA determine whether, and to what extent, employers are under-reporting workplace injuries and illnesses by targeting low-rate establishments operating in historically high-rate industries for comprehensive reviews of their injury and illness records.  

 

To review OSHA's record-keeping requirements, click here.

 

Site-Specific Targeting 2009 (SST-09), increased activity announced in September. OSHA will conduct safety inspections at nearly 4,000 high-hazard worksites; that's approximately 200 more worksites than last year. OSHA divided these workplaces into three sectors: manufacturing, non-manufacturing, and nursing homes.  The SST-09 inspection program is based on injury and illness data from the agency's 2008 Data Initiative Survey. Employers that didn't respond to the survey should take note since OSHA plans to inspect some of those sites, as well. 

 

Revised hazard communication standard, proposed on September 30. OSHA proposed to modify its existing Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) to conform with the United Nations's Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labeling of Chemicals. The proposed modifications to the standard include: revised criteria for classification of chemical hazards; revised labeling provisions that include requirements for use of standardized signal words, pictograms, hazard statements, and precautionary statements; and a specified format for safety data sheets. In addition, if the proposed rules are finalized, every employer that has a hazard communication program will have to train its employees on the new system.

 

Employers have until December 29 to submit comments. 

 

A review of all state-administered safety programs, as a result of the agency's findings at Nevada OSHA; final report issued October 20.  OSHA turned its attention to Nevada following 25 workplace fatalities in construction accidents between January 2008 and June 2009, as well as two complaints regarding the state program's investigation of one of those fatalities.  In what's being called the most significant review of a state program in almost 20 years, what the agency discovered was alarming.  Among the findings: The state program discouraged the issuance of willful violations; failed to cite clearly supportable repeat violations; failed, on at least one occasion, to speak with employees at an accident site to determine their exposure to the alleged hazard; failed to ensure employers corrected recognized hazards; and failed to properly maintain enforcement data. 

 

Based on these findings, OSHA crafted a detailed plan of action it expects the Nevada program to take. The findings also sparked the agency to want to take a closer look at all state-administered safety programs.  Nevada is one of 27 states and American territories approved by OSHA to operate its own safety and health program.

 

Record-breaking fine, announced October 30. OSHA issued $87.43 million in proposed penalties to BP Products North America, Inc.  In 2005, safety violations at BP's Texas City, TX, refinery resulted in a massive explosion — with 15 deaths and 170 people injured.  BP entered into a settlement agreement with OSHA in September of that year, under which the company agreed to take corrective actions to eliminate potential hazards similar to those that caused the tragedy. An inspection recently concluded by OSHA revealed that not only did the company fail to correct hundreds of violations cited in the settlement agreement, but it also committed hundreds of new violations.

 

Best Practices

Before OSHA comes knocking on your door:

• Review your organization's safety and health policies and procedures.  Make sure they are up-to-date and reference any new hazards that might have been added to the workplace.
  
  

• Monitor to ensure managers and supervisors are consistently enforcing safety rules/procedures and disciplining violators.
  

• Check regularly that all equipment is working properly and that employees have all necessary safety gear.
  
  

• Provide safety training to all necessary personnel; retrain periodically.

Related Topic(s): Safety & Health/OSHA