Did you know that you can request files from OSHA? Under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), employers, employees, and third parties have the right to request documents from OSHA’s inspection files. These records provide valuable insight into the evidence and reasoning behind OSHA’s decisions, including citations issued during site inspections. They can also be
Just what does an OSHA citation have to include? Section 9(a) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act requires that citations
“describe with particularity the nature of the violation, including a reference to the provision of the Act, standard, rule, regulation, or order alleged to have been violated.”
This statutory mandate is designed to ensure
What happens if OSHA issues a citation and you do not agree with any or all of it? You have 15 working days from the date you receive the citation to contest in writing the citation, proposed penalty, and/or the abatement date.
Before formally contesting a citation, employers may request an
Many employers have a false notion that OSHA cannot issue a citation if there is no specific standard violated.
The reality is, however, that OSHA has a catchall/gap filler provision that allows it to cite an employer even if no specific standard was violated: the “General Duty Clause,” Section 5(a)(1) of the Occupational Safety and
We often hear, “OSHA can’t cite me because I didn’t employ the injured worker.” Unfortunately, this statement is often untrue.
Under OSHA’s Multi-Employer Doctrine, if you are an employer on a worksite where other companies are also performing work (e.g., construction sites and oil/gas well sites), you can be subject to citation for workplace hazards
Most frequently, employers do not hear from OSHA unless they report a workplace injury. When a reported workplace injury does occur, OSHA will perform a walkthrough inspection of the worksite and may ultimately issue a citation for hazardous conditions OSHA believes may have caused or contributed to the incident. However, OSHA is not limited to
OSHA has a time limit on issuing citations. It must issue a citation within six months of the occurrence of any violation. The only exception to this rule is where the employer has concealed the violative condition or misled OSHA. If such a situation occurs, OSHA must issue the citation within six months from the
Although OSHA has the right to conduct private, one-on-one interviews with a company’s non-managerial employees, those same employees have rights too. Those rights include:
We all know that OSHA has the right to interview folks as part of an investigation. Whether a company representative and the company attorney can also attend an interview depends on who is being interviewed.
If the person to be interviewed is a non-managerial employee, OSHA can conduct the interview in private, outside the presence
Please follow along as we discuss the top 10 things every employer should know about OSHA over the next few weeks.
According to 29 CFR 1903.8(c), employers and employees have the right to authorize