Today, a copy of OSHA’s final electronic rule, “Improve Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses,” was made available for public inspection prior to release in the Federal Register on May 12, 2016. In November 2013, OSHA published a notice of proposed rulemaking to add electronic recordkeeping requirements that would require certain employers to electronically submit to OSHA injury and illness recordkeeping information on a quarterly and/or annual basis. Additionally, the proposed rule would establish a public searchable website where OSHA would make employers’ injury and illness records available to the general public. In August 2014, OSHA issued a supplemental notice of proposed rulemaking to include provisions that would prohibit employers from taking adverse [termination, reduction in pay, reassignment to less desirable position] action against employees for reporting injuries and illnesses.
Articles Discussing The Federal Occupational Safety And Health Act And Other Issues Relating To Workplace Safety And Health.
OSHA Issues Rules for Food Safety Whistleblower Cases
On April 18, 2016, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued final procedural rules for investigating whistleblower cases under the Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA). The new rules give employees who are retaliated against for exposing possible food safety violations the right to reinstatement, money damages, and attorney’s fees – and even to a jury trial in federal court.
OSHA, NIOSH Release Joint Guidance on Zika Virus Prevention
Federal government agencies have released interim guidance to provide employers and workers information and advice on preventing occupational exposure to the Zika virus.
Elevated Fine Lacks Justification, Mine Safety Agency Attorney Concedes
A government attorney agreed with opposing counsel that the Mine Safety and Health Administration had not justified a proposed 127 percent increase in fines against an Illinois coal operator. The two sides disagreed, however, on the remedy to correct the situation.
Final Electronic Recordkeeping Rule Expected Soon
In November 2013, OSHA published a notice of proposed rulemaking, “Improve Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses,” to add electronic recordkeeping requirements that would require certain employers to electronically submit to OSHA injury and illness recordkeeping information on a quarterly and/or annual basis. Additionally, the proposed rule would establish a public searchable website where OSHA would make employers’ injury and illness records available to the general public.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Revises Guidance on Heat and Hot Environments
In the first revision in 30 years of its criteria document on workers’ exposure to heat and hot environments, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention removed ceiling limit recommendations for acclimatized and un-acclimated workers, but has left untouched its recommended exposure and alert limits.
Mixed Results Seen in Mine Safety Agency’s February Impact Inspections
Two coal mines in Appalachia received no citations while four other coal operations in that region, along with an Indiana cement plant, were tagged with alleged infractions in the double digits by the Mine Safety and Health Administration during an impact inspection sweep in February. Ten coal mines and five metal/non-metal facilities in nine states were visited during the month.
Opposition to OSHA’s Silica Rule Spurs Rush of Lawsuits
Labor and business interests have dashed to the courthouse to launch lawsuits against the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s new silica standard, underscoring the controversy over the comprehensive health rule.
Current Inspections Could Result in Citations with Increased Penalties
Under the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015 OSHA is required to increase civil penalties for the first time since 1990 and a one-time catch-up adjustment will occur in August 2016. Penalties are expected to be increased by roughly 80 percent, meaning a serious citation of $7,000 may now be $12,500 and a $70,000 willful violation may now be $125,000. The precise penalty amount will be known when OSHA publishes this information in the Federal Register on or before July 1, 2016.
Injuries of Intoxicated or Drugged Employees Recordable
In a recent interpretation letter, an employer posed the following scenario and question to OSHA:
A Whistleblower on OSHA’s Whistleblower Protection Program
Darrell Whitman is a former attorney and professor who became an Office of Whistleblower Protection Programs (OWPP) investigator in 2010. Whitman was a GS-12 Regional Investigator for OWPP, the U.S. Department of Labor, and OSHA. In 2011, Whitman and several other investigators began challenging abuses of power in OWPP’s Region 9 offices in San Francisco.
16 Legal Tips: Handling OSHA Citations the Right Way
In its recent publication 16 Legal Tips: Handling OSHA Citations the Right Way, Intelivert asked 16 top legal experts for their tips to safety professionals who may find themselves on the receiving end of an OSHA citation. Three of those experts were Jackson Lewis attorneys – Carla Gunnin in our Atlanta office, as well as Tressi Cordaro and Nickole Winnett in the Washington, DC office.
OSHA Lauds Success of Reporting Rule While Threatening Tough Consequences for Noncompliance
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration finds that its new severe injury reporting program is a success. It believes a large number of severe injuries still are not being reported by employers. The agency has warned that tough consequences face employers who choose to ignore the reporting requirements.
OSHA, Focusing on Meat Processing Industry, Launches Emphasis Programs for Three Midwestern States
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has launched emphasis programs in three Midwestern states in an effort to reduce injuries and illnesses that government data show have affected 7.5 percent of employees in the meat processing industry there.
OSHA Announces Sweeping Changes in Final Rule on Silica
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has released its final rule on occupational exposure to respirable crystalline silica.