The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970

1. The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 • Public Law 91-596 • The Occupational Safety & Health Act of 1970 • ". . . to assure so far as possible every working man and woman in the Nation safe and healthful working conditions and to preserve our human resources."

2. Duties – Section 5 • Where OSHA has not promulgated specific standards, employers are responsible for following the Act's general duty clause {Section 5(a)(1)}. • The General Duty Clause is in the Act, it is not a standard • ”Each employer - shall furnish...a place of employment which is free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm to his employees."

3. Use of the General Duty Clause • The General Duty Clause is used only where there is no standard that applies to the particular hazard • The following elements are necessary to prove a violation of the General Duty Clause: • The employer failed to keep the workplace free of a hazard to which employees of that employer were exposed; • The hazard was recognized; • The hazard was causing or was likely to cause death or serious physical harm; and • There was a feasible and useful method to correct the hazard.

4. OSHA Standards • OSHA is responsible for promulgating legally enforceable standards. • Responsibility of employers to become familiar with standards applicable to their establishments.

5. Inspections, Investigations & Recordkeeping - Section 8 • 8(a) OSHA representatives are authorized to: (1) enter without delay, at reasonable times, & (2) inspect during regular working hours and at reasonable times and to question privately employers and employees • 8(b) Subpoena power • 8(c) Recordkeeping and posting • 8(f) Employees right of complaint

6. Construction Defined • OSHA's regulations define "construction work" as "construction, alteration, and/or repair, including painting and decorating." at 29 CFR 1926.32(g) and 29 CFR 1910.12(b). • They further provide that OSHA's construction industry standards apply "to every employment and place of employment of every employee engaged in construction work." id. at 1910.12(a).

7. Focused Inspection Initiative in Construction • Since 1994, OSHA has used a focused inspection program for construction industry sites • The Focused Inspection Initiative will enable OSHA to focus on the leading hazards that cause 90% of the injuries and deaths. • The leading hazards are: • falls from elevations (e.g., floors, platforms, roofs) • struck by (e.g., falling objects, vehicles) • caught in/between (e.g., cave-ins, unguarded machinery, equipment) • electrical shock (e.g., overhead power lines, power tools and cords, outlets, temporary wiring)

8. Focused Inspection Qualifications • In order to qualify, the following conditions must be met: • the project safety and health program/plan meets the requirements of 29 CFR 1926 Subpart C, General Safety and Health Provisions, and • there is a designated competent person responsible for and capable of implementing the program/plan. • If the project meets the above criteria, an abbreviated walk-around inspection shall be conducted focusing on: • verification of the safety and health program/plan effectiveness by interviews and observation; • the four leading hazards listed above, and • other serious hazards observed by the CSHO.

9. Enforcement – Section 10 • 10(a) Employers right of contest; Citations can be contested before the Safety and Health Review Commission, an independent quasi-judicial branch of the Department of Labor • 10(c) Employee’s right of contest of abatement dates

10. Procedures to Correct Imminent Dangers –Section 13 • Allows OSHA to petition for (obtain) a restraining order in cases of Imminent Danger. • U.S. District Court Issues • Area Director requests through Solicitor of Labor • OSHA will: • Advise employer of imminent danger • Advise employees of rights • Petition District Court for relief

11. Penalties Section 17 • Penalties were increased in 1990 • Willful & repeated violations to a maximum of $ 70,000 • Minimum $ 5,000 willful • Serious & other than serious to $ 7,000 • Failure to abate to a maximum of $7,000 for each day violation continues

12. Occupational Safety & Health Review Commission - Section 12 • Establishes membership and terms of Review Commission (OSHRC) • OSHRC acts independently of OSHA • http://www.oshrc.gov

13. 29 CFR 1926.405 (j) (4) (ii) (C) (1) Lower Case Alphabetical Arabic Number Lower Case Roman Upper Case Alphabetical Italicized Arabic Number

14. Recordkeeping Employers of 11 or more employees must maintain records of occupational injuries and illnesses as they occur. The purposes of keeping records are to permit survey material to be compiled, to help define high hazard industries, and to inform employees of the status of their employer's record. Employers that do not fall under exempt status For example, OSHA recordkeeping is not required for certain retail trades and some service industries.

15. Reporting All employers must still comply with OSHA standards, display the OSHA poster, and report to OSHA within 8 hours: Any accident that results in one or more fatalities or The in-patient hospitalization of three or more employees. orally report the fatality/multiple hospitalization by telephone or in person to the Area Office of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA),

16. Multi-Employer Worksites • OSHA Compliance Directive CPL 2-0.124 • Multi-employer Worksites. On multi-employer worksites (in all industry sectors), more than one employer may be citable for a hazardous condition that violates an OSHA standard. A two-step process must be followed in determining whether more than one employer is to be cited. • Step One. The first step is to determine whether the employer is a creating, exposing, correcting, or controlling employer. The definitions in paragraphs (B) - (E) below explain and give examples of each. Remember that an employer may have multiple roles (see paragraph H). Once you determine the role of the employer, go to Step Two to determine if a citation is appropriate (NOTE: only exposing employers can be cited for General Duty Clause violations). • Step Two. If the employer falls into one of these categories, it has obligations with respect to OSHA requirements. Step Two is to determine if the employer's actions were sufficient to meet those obligations. The extent of the actions required of employers varies based on which category applies. Note that the extent of the measures that a controlling employer must take to satisfy its duty to exercise reasonable care to prevent and detect violations is less than what is required of an employer with respect to protecting its own employees.

17. Multi-employer Worksite categories • Creating Employer: The employer that caused a hazardous condition that violates an OSHA standard. • Correcting Employer: An employer who is engaged in a common undertaking, on the same worksite, as the exposing employer and is responsible for correcting a hazard. This usually occurs where an employer is given the responsibility of installing and/or maintaining particular safety/health equipment or devices. • Controlling Employer: An employer who has general supervisory authority over the worksite, including the power to correct safety and health violations itself or require others to correct them. • Exposing Employer: An employer whose own employees are exposed to the hazard.

18. Construction Safety • Selecting Contractors • What is one of the problems with using OSHA rates to evaluate a subcontractor’s safety performance?