As of January 1, 2015, OSHA is setting forth new reporting requirements for employers. According to a recent OSHA “Tweet”, employers will be required to report all work-related fatalities within eight hours and all in-patient hospitalizations, amputations and losses of an eye within 24 hours of learning of the aforementioned accidents. Employers are advised that reporting to OSHA may be performed through the OSHA website or by contacting OSHA via telephone. The New Year’s resolution changes the former reporting requirements. Under the “lame duck” requirements…
Continue reading...

Can an employer receive an OSHA citation for failing to protect its employees from exposure to the Ebola virus? Surprisingly, the answer is yes. While most workers in the United States are unlikely to encounter the Ebola virus, workers whose jobs involve healthcare, airline and other transportation operations, cleaning, and environmental services, may be at higher risk for exposure. Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act (“OSH Act”), employers are responsible for ensuring that workers are protected from exposure to the virus. OSHA actually has…
Continue reading...

An OSHA citation usually comes at the worst time. Actually, is there ever a good time? Probably not. But, what if after receiving a citation you realize you do not agree with it? Or, perhaps, you cannot deny that the violative conduct occurred, but you believe certain mitigating factors should be taken into account that might warrant dismissal of the citation or a reduction of the penalty. If these thoughts are coming to mind, you may have a basis to challenge the citation. In order…
Continue reading...

If you work with or manufacture potentially hazardous chemicals, OSHA wants to hear from you. OSHA has recently launched a national dialogue in an effort to increase the prevention of work-related illness caused by chemicals and hazardous substances. In a YouTube video introducing the initiative, Dr. David Michaels, the Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health, commented that “[m]any of our chemical exposure standards are dangerously out of date and do not adequately protect workers.” Dr. Michaels further stated that the process…
Continue reading...

In the words of U.S. Secretary of Labor Thomas E. Perez, “[t]he cell phones in our pockets can’t come at the cost of a worker’s life.” On October 14, 2014, the Department of Labor, Federal Communications Commission, and telecommunications industry leaders joined forces to discuss solutions to the surging trend of tragic deaths among cellular phone tower workers. With worker safety in mind, the trifecta established a group dedicated to implementing recommended safety practices after collaborating with entities such as the National Association of Tower…
Continue reading...

On September 11, 2014, OSHA announced a new final rule requiring employers to notify OSHA when an employee is killed on the job or suffers a work-related hospitalization, amputation or loss of an eye. The rule, which also updates the list of employers partially exempt from OSHA record-keeping requirements, goes into effect on January 1, 2015. Under the rule, employers will be required to notify OSHA of work-related fatalities within eight hours, and work-related in-patient hospitalizations, amputations or losses of an eye within 24 hours. …
Continue reading...

OSHA has announced that it will extend the comment period on the proposed rule to improve the tracking of workplace injuries and illnesses to Oct. 14, 2014. The proposal, published on Nov. 8, 2013, would amend OSHA’s recordkeeping regulation to add requirements for the electronic submission of injury and illness information that employers are already required to keep. OSHA is soliciting comments on whether to amend the proposed rule to: 1) require that employers inform their employees of their right to report injuries and…
Continue reading...

President Obama recently signed an Executive Order mandating that companies seeking federal contracts must disclose all labor law violations from the previous three years in order to be eligible for such contracts. The Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order will govern new federal procurement contracts valued at more than $500,000 and provide information on companies’ compliance with federal labor laws for agencies. The Executive Order is expected to be implemented on new contracts in stages, on a prioritized basis, during 2016. The goal of…
Continue reading...

Every year, dozens of workers are killed by heat, and thousands more experience heat-related illnesses. With summer heat on the rise across the nation, workers and employers are turning to OSHA’s Heat Safety Tool for help staying safe in the heat. The App allows workers and supervisors to calculate the heat index for their worksite, and, based on the heat index, displays a risk level to outdoor workers. In addition, it provides reminders about protective measures that should be taken at that risk level to…
Continue reading...