OSHA Addresses Record Number of Egregious Cases
"There's a new sheriff in town," Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis warned during her 2009 swearing-in ceremony.
Online, August 19, 2010 (Newswire.com) - Following up on that warning, OSHA is aggressively enforcing its standards when employers show indifference to protecting the safety and lives of their workers.
During the past year and a half, OSHA investigators have issued citations for egregious violations in 17 cases, including those involving BP Products North America, Kleen Energy and Cooperative Plus. This is more than twice as many egregious cases as were issued during the two years before the current administration took office.
OSHA inspectors cite egregious violations when an employer shows multiple instances of willful and flagrant indifference to correcting workplace hazards, many of which tragically result in worker fatalities, worksite catastrophes (such as explosions or chemical releases) or large numbers of worker injuries or illnesses. "We will not tolerate this type of blatant and egregious disregard for the health and safety of workers. Employers need to know there will be consequences," said OSHA Assistant Secretary David Michaels.
We know that in today's economy, safety professionals like you are being asked to do more with less. However, worker safety is one area that cannot be compromised.
A recommended solution is to hire a professional machine safety company to catalog your machines, assess them for safety deficiencies and produce a custom report detailing the findings. The machines should be ranked according to its risk factors to help you make educated decisions regarding safety remediation.
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