Highlights:
A National Employment Law Project (NELP) Study Found That OSHA Enforcement Fell From 2017 To 2018. According to Politico, “A NELP study released in June found that OSHA enforcement fell from 2017 to 2018, after Trump took office.” [Politico, 9/3/18]
2017-2018: 5,200 American Workers Were Killed On The Job With More Than 2.85 Million Suffering Serious Injury. According to the National Employment Law Project, “Almost 5,200 workers were killed on the job last year and over 2.85 million more suffered an injury serious enough to warrant medical attention or time away from their job.” [National Employment Law Project, 6/11/18]
Despite An Increase In Work-Related Fatalities, OSHA Enforcement Activity Under The Trump Administration Declined. According to the National Employment Law Project, “The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports that the number of work-related fatalities is increasing.[ii] Yet, under the Trump administration, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) enforcement activity—crucial to saving workers’ lives—is declining.” [National Employment Law Project, 6/11/18]
Under Trump’s First Three Years, OSHA Conducted About 81,000 Safety Inspections, A 4.7% Decrease From The Obama Years. According to the Center for Public Integrity, “During the first three years under Trump, OSHA conducted about 81,000 safety inspections — a 4.7 percent decrease from about 85,000 conducted during the last three years of Obama’s presidency, according to a Public Integrity analysis of the agency’s inspection data.” [Center for Public Integrity, 8/18/20]
Under Trump, Half Of The Senior Positions At OSHA Remained Vacant. According to the Intercept, “Meanwhile, Trump has tried to slash OSHA’s funding in every one of his budget proposals (Congress has repeatedly restored it) and has never bothered to nominate a leader for the agency. Almost half the senior positions at OSHA remain vacant.” [Intercept, 10/20/20]
The Trump Administration Never Bothered To Nominate A Leader For OSHA. According to the Intercept, “Meanwhile, Trump has tried to slash OSHA’s funding in every one of his budget proposals (Congress has repeatedly restored it) and has never bothered to nominate a leader for the agency. Almost half the senior positions at OSHA remain vacant.” [Intercept, 10/20/20]
Trump Tried To Slash OSHA’s Funding In His Budget Proposals. According to the Intercept, “Meanwhile, Trump has tried to slash OSHA’s funding in every one of his budget proposals (Congress has repeatedly restored it) and has never bothered to nominate a leader for the agency. Almost half the senior positions at OSHA remain vacant.” [Intercept, 10/20/20]
Trump’s Occupational And Health Administration (OSHA) Proposed A Rule To Loosen Reporting Requirements For Injury And Illness Data At Companies With More Than 250 Workers. According to Politico, “At the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, Trump officials are seeking to loosen reporting requirements for injury and illness data from large companies. A rule proposed in July in would relieve companies with 250 workers or more from a previous obligation to submit detailed injury and illness data, which OSHA had intended to publish online.” [Politico, 9/3/18]
Trump’s Order Was Expected To Slow Ongoing OSHA Rulemaking And Discourage Wide-Ranging Rules, Such As Revising Limits For Chemical Exposures. According to Bloomberg, “The Trump administration executive order and implementation guidance told agencies that for every new rule they propose, two regulations must be offered for cancellation. The employer costs saved by deleting the two rules must be the same or greater than the employer costs of complying with the new rule. The new policy is expected to slow ongoing OSHA rulemakings, such as an industry-backed effort to write regulations specifically for tree-trimming work and discourage the Occupational Safety and Health Administration from pursing wide-ranging rules, such as revising limits for chemical exposures.” [Bloomberg, 3/9/17]
The Order Threatened To Increase OSHA’s Regulatory Costs By Forcing Agency Staff To Go Through Public Comment Periods And Legal Reviews For The Two Regulations It Intended To Strike For Every New Regulation It Worked On. According to Bloomberg, “While the executive order may save employers time and money, it could increase OSHA’s regulatory costs. For every new regulation OSHA works on, Barab said, agency staff would have to go through public comment periods and legal reviews for the two regulations it intended to strike. “It would, essentially, triple OSHA’s work,” said Barab.” [Bloomberg, 3/9/17]
Trump Signed A Bill Eliminating The Fair And Safe Workplaces Rule. According to the Chicago Tribune, “President Donald Trump signed a bill Monday that killed an Obama-era worker safety rule that required businesses competing for large federal contracts to disclose and correct serious safety and other labor law violations. Earlier this month, the Senate voted to eliminate the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces rule, which applied to contracts valued at $500,000 or more. Votes on the bill in both the House and Senate divided along party lines. The Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces regulation was finalized in August but most of it was never implemented. Within days of it being finalized, the Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) sued, securing a temporary injunction that prohibited the federal government from implementing it.” [Chicago Tribune, 3/27/17]
The Rule Required Companies Applying For Federal Contracts To Report Labor Law Violations And Comply With Paycheck Transparency Laws. According to the National Law Review, “As anticipated, President Trump has put an end to Executive Order 13673 – Fair Pay & Safe Workplaces, also known as the ‘blacklisting’ executive order. […] The end result – federal contractors will not be required to report alleged labor violations to federal agencies as part of the bid process, are not required to implement procedures to comply with required paycheck transparency, and will not be prohibited from entering into mandatory arbitration agreements concerning employee Title VII claims.” [National Law Review, 3/28/17]
David Madland Of The Center For American Progress: “People Who Rip Off Workers Rip Off The Government.” According to the Washington Post, “David Madland of the Center for American Progress, a liberal think tank, said the rule applied only to companies with contracts worth $500,000 or more. With its elimination, he said, taxpayers will lose alongside affected workers. One purpose of the rule was to make it easier for federal agencies to identify contractors who were not honest brokers when it came to employee pay. ‘People who rip off workers rip off the government,’ Madland said.” [Washington Post, 3/6/17]
Rep. Bobby Scott: “If You Can Save Money By Underpaying Your Workers And Violating OSHA, Why Should You Have A Competitive Advantage Over Those Who Are Complying With The Law?” According to the Washington Post, “Rep. Robert C. ‘Bobby’ Scott (D-Va.) is leading efforts to block the rule-killing measures. He argues that Byrne’s measure to kill the Volks rule ‘will block OSHA’s enforcement efforts and create a safe harbor for those employers who deliberately underreport.’ OSHA says staffing levels permit investigators to visit an American business roughly once every 140 years, unless a serious violation is reported. Before Monday night’s vote, Scott defended the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces rule, saying that nothing in the regulation would have banned a company from securing a federal contract. He noted that only companies with ‘serious, pervasive, intentional and repeated’ safety violations would have to report them. ‘Who qualifies for that who we need to help?’ Scott said. ‘If you can save money by underpaying your workers and violating OSHA, why should you have a competitive advantage over those who are complying with the law?’” [Washington Post, 3/6/17]
Former OSHA Chief Of Staff Debbie Berkowitz: Republicans “Voted To Block The Obama Administration’s Fair Pay And Safe Workplaces Final Rule – To The Detriment Of Workers, Taxpayers And Law-Abiding Employers.” According to an opinion by former OSHA chief of staff Debbie Berkowitz for The Hill, “On Monday, these senators voted to block the Obama administration’s Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces final rule—to the detriment of workers, taxpayers and law-abiding employers.” [Debbie Berkowitz – The Hill, 3/7/17]
Business Groups Opposed The Bill And Secured An Injunction Against It Shortly After It Was Finalized
Washington Post: The Rule Had Been “Targeted By Business Groups.” According to the Washington Post, “President Trump and congressional Republicans are poised to roll back a series of Obama-era worker safety regulations targeted by business groups, beginning Monday night with a vote by the Senate to kill a rule that required federal contractors to disclose and correct serious safety violations. In a narrow result that divided along party lines, the Senate voted 49 to 48 to eliminate the regulation, dubbed the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces rule.” [Washington Post, 3/6/17]
The Chamber Of Commerce, The Business Roundtable, And Other Business Groups Opposed The Rule. According to the Washington Post, “The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Business Roundtable and other leading business groups have urged Congress and the Trump administration to eliminate the regulations, arguing that they discourage businesses from competing for government contracts, thereby reducing jobs.” [Washington Post, 3/6/17]
The Rule Was Finalized In August 2016, And A Court Issued An Injunction Against It In October 2016 When The Associated Builders And Contracts Sued. According to the Washington Post, “In a narrow result that divided along party lines, the Senate voted 49 to 48 to eliminate the regulation, dubbed the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces rule. Finalized in August and blocked by a court order in October, the rule would limit the ability of companies with recent safety problems to complete for government contracts unless they agreed to remedies. […] The Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces regulation was finalized in August. Days later, the Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) sued, securing a temporary injunction that prohibited the federal government from implementing it. ABC and other business groups objected to the rule’s requirement that companies disclose citations for alleged safety violations that they are still challenging.” [Washington Post, 3/6/17]
Mother Jones Headline: “In One Executive Order, Trump Revoked Years Of Workplace Protections For Women” [Mother Jones, 4/5/17]
Andrea Johnson Of The National Women’s Law Center: The Rule Was Especially Important To Women Who “Are Vulnerable To Labor And Employment Abuses” And Face “Retaliation When They Try To Unionize Or Enforce Their Rights.” According to a blog post by Andrea Johnson for the National Women’s Law Center, “Ditching the Fair Pay and Safe Workplace rule hurts all workers, but is especially bad news for women. Women are more likely to work in low-wage jobs, and are vulnerable to labor and employment law abuses, like wage theft, sexual harassment and other forms of sex discrimination on the job, or retaliation when they try to unionize or enforce their rights. Sexual harassment is rampant, particularly in industries dominated by low-wage jobs, but is vastly underreported. Forced arbitration removes any incentive for workers to come forward, allowing harassers to continue their behavior without consequence and victims to be silenced.” [Andrea Johnson – Blog, National Women’s Law Center, 3/28/17]
Mother Jones: The Fair Pay And Safe Workplaces Rule Required Federal Contractors To Follow Labor Laws, Including Ones Aimed At Parental Leave, Sexual Discrimination, Equal Pay, And Sexual Harassment Proceedings. According to Mother Jones, “In 2014, President Barack Obama signed the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces executive order. It required companies with federal contracts to heed 14 different labor and civil rights laws, including ones aimed at protecting parental leave, weeding out discrimination against women and minorities, and ensuring equal pay for women and fair processes surrounding workplace sexual harassment allegations. Last week, Trump revoked this order, leaving workers at thousands of companies much more vulnerable to a host of abuses from their employers—and undoing protections meant to create more equitable workplaces for women.” [Mother Jones, 4/5/17]
The Rule Imposed Paycheck Transparency Requirements For Federal Contractors. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, “The [Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Executive Order] seeks to ensure that contractors' employees are given the information they need each pay period to make sure they are getting paid what they are owed. The Executive Order requires covered contractors and subcontractors to provide wage statements to covered workers, giving them information concerning their hours worked, overtime hours, pay, and any additions to or deductions made from their pay. The Executive Order also requires covered contractors and subcontractors to provide to workers whom they treat as independent contractors a document informing them of their independent contractor status.” [U.S. Department of Labor, accessed 3/29/17]
NBC: “The Fair Pay Order Trump Overturned Was One Of The Few Ways To Ensure Companies Were Paying Women Workers Equally To Their Male Colleagues.” According to NBC News, “The other result of Trump's executive order on federal contractors was lifting a mandate on paycheck transparency, or requiring employers to detail earnings, pay scales, salaries, and other details. The Fair Pay order Trump overturned was one of the few ways to ensure companies were paying women workers equally to their male colleagues.” [NBC News, 4/3/17]
2005-2009: 60% Of The 50 Worst Wage Theft Violators Received Federal Contracts
NBC: “Out Of The 50 Worst Wage Theft Violators That GAO Examined Between 2005-2009, 60 Percent Had Been Awarded Federal Contracts After Being Penalized By The Department Of Labor’s Wage And Hour Division.” According to NBC News, “In an attempt to keep the worst violators from receiving taxpayer dollars, the Fair Pay order included two rules that impacted women workers: paycheck transparency and a ban on forced arbitration clauses for sexual harassment, sexual assault or discrimination claims. Noreen Farrell, director of the anti-sex discrimination law firm Equal Rights Advocates, said Trump went ‘on the attack against workers and taxpayers.’ ‘We have an executive order that essentially forces women to pay to keep companies in business that discriminate against them, with their own tax dollars,’ said Farrell. ‘It’s an outrage.’ Out of the 50 worst wage theft violators that GAO examined between 2005-2009, 60 percent had been awarded federal contracts after being penalized by the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division. Similar violation rates were tracked through the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the National Labor Relations Board.” [NBC News, 4/3/17]
The Rule Banned Forced Arbitration Clauses, Which Forced Employees To Settle Disputes, Including Sexual Harassment Claims, Privately With The Company. According to NBC News, “In an attempt to keep the worst violators from receiving taxpayer dollars, the Fair Pay order included two rules that impacted women workers: paycheck transparency and a ban on forced arbitration clauses for sexual harassment, sexual assault or discrimination claims. […] But the research did not reveal much about sexual harassment or sexual assault claims. That’s because forced arbitration clauses — also sometimes called ‘cover-up clauses’ by critics — are commonly used to keep sex discrimination claims out of the courts and off the public record. ‘Arbitrations are private proceedings with secret filings and private attorneys, and they often help hide sexual harassment claims,’ said Maya Raghu, Director of Workplace Equality at the National Women’s Law Center. ‘It can silence victims. They may feel afraid of coming forward because they might think they are the only one, or fear retaliation.’ Mandatory arbitration clauses are increasingly used in employment contracts, said Raghu, who added that banning the process was an important step forward for victims of workplace harassment or assault.” [NBC News, 4/3/17]
One In Five American Workers Work For Companies With Federal Contracts. According to the Washington Post, “A half-dozen other worker safety regulations are in Republican crosshairs, with one headed to the Senate floor as soon as this week. Many are directed at companies with federal contracts. Such companies employ 1 in 5 American workers — meaning the effort could have wide-ranging effects.” [Washington Post, 3/6/17]
Huffington Post: “Studies Have Shown That Many Federal Contractors Routinely Break Workplace Laws, And Many Continue To Receive Contracts Regardless Of Violations.” According to the Huffington Post, “Studies have shown that many federal contractors routinely break workplace laws, and many continue to receive contracts regardless of violations. The Labor Department estimated that the rule would have applied to roughly 14,000 contractors each year. ‘Only a small share of these companies is expected to have reportable violations, and even fewer are expected to have serious, repeated, willful, or pervasive violations to report,’ the department noted.” [Huffington Post, 3/6/17]
Chicago Tribune: Sen. Elizabeth Warren “Released A Staff Report That Showed That 66 Of The Federal Government's 100 Largest Contractors Have At Some Point Violated Federal Wage And Hour Laws.” According to the Chicago Tribune, “In a last-minute effort to fight for the rule earlier this month, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., released a staff report that showed that 66 of the federal government's 100 largest contractors have at some point violated federal wage and hour laws.” [Chicago Tribune, 3/27/17]
Chicago Tribune: Warren’s Staff Report Also Said That Since 2015 “More Than A Third Of The 100 Largest OSHA Penalties Have Been Imposed On Federal Contractors.” According to the Chicago Tribune, “In a last-minute effort to fight for the rule earlier this month, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., released a staff report that showed that 66 of the federal government's 100 largest contractors have at some point violated federal wage and hour laws. Since 2015, the report says, more than a third of the 100 largest OSHA penalties have been imposed on federal contractors.” [Chicago Tribune, 3/27/17]
The Fair Pay And Safe Workplaces Rule Was Partly Inspired By The 2012 Wrongful Death Of A Tyson’s Foods Employee. According to the Washington Post, “Warren criticized the Republican-led effort during a speech on the Senate floor moments before the vote. ‘Instead of creating jobs or raising wages,’ she said, ‘they’re trying to make it easier for companies that get big-time, taxpayer-funded government contracts to steal wages from their employees and injure their workers without admitting responsibility.’ That concern prompted the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces regulation. Among the strongest data points: Rodney Bridgett, 37, a worker at a Tysons Foods beef processing plant in Nebraska, was crushed by a piece of heavy equipment when a chain snapped on the plant’s ‘kill floor’ in 2012. Tyson spokesman Worth Sparkman called Bridgett’s death ‘a tragic accident’ and said the company aspires to ‘have zero work-related injuries and illnesses, and continue to improve our culture related to safety every day.’ OSHA investigators found that Tysons supervisors had repeatedly failed to inspect the faulty chain.” [Washington Post, 3/6/17]
Tyson’s Foods Was Receiving Nearly $300 Million A Year In Federal Contracts At The Time. According to the Washington Post, “OSHA investigators found that Tysons supervisors had repeatedly failed to inspect the faulty chain. While OSHA sought to fine the company, the Obama administration moved separately to target a major source of Tysons’s revenue: nearly $300 million a year in federal contracts.” [Washington Post, 3/6/17]
Former OSHA Chief Of Staff Debbie Berkowitz: A Company Continued To Receive “Hundreds Of Millions Of Dollars” In Navy Contracts After It Was Found To Be Violating “The Most Basic Safety Precautions” And Had An Explosion That Killed Two Workers And Seriously Injured Four Others. According to an opinion by former OSHA chief of staff Debbie Berkowitz for The Hill, “A few years ago, when I was working as a senior official at OSHA, there was an explosion in a shipyard that killed two workers and very seriously injured four more. OSHA found that the company had violated the most basic safety precautions and put their workers’ lives in grave danger. The company was charged more than $1 million in fines and citations. Unbelievably, even after this horrific incident—and for years afterwards—the company continued to receive hundreds of millions of dollars in government contracts. Don’t you think it would’ve been important for the Navy to know that taxpayer dollars were being given to a company that cut corners on safety and jeopardized workers’ lives? Wouldn’t it have been better for the workers, their families, and the business itself if the company, as part of the federal contracting process, had been encouraged to come into compliance with basic safety standards?” [Debbie Berkowitz – The Hill, 3/7/17]
Trump Signed H.J.Res.83, Which Nullified A DOL Rule Related To The Obligation Of Employers To Maintain Accurate Records Of Workplace Injuries And Illnesses. According to a press release by The White House Office of the Press Secretary, “On Monday, April 3, 2017, the President signed into law: […] H.J.Res. 83, which nullifies the Department of Labor's rule titled Clarification of Employer's Continuing Obligation to Make and Maintain an Accurate Record of Each Recordable Injury and Illness.” [White House Office of the Press Secretary, 4/3/17]
The Joint Resolution Was Passed Under The Congressional Review Act, Which Prohibited Federal Agencies From Ever Reissuing Similar Regulations Without Congressional Approval. According to Lexology, “On April 5, 2017, President Trump signed the congressional resolution disapproving Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) rule, ‘Clarification of Employer’s Continuing Obligation to Make and Maintain Accurate Records of Each Recordable Injury and Illness,’ generally referred to as the Volks rule. Both the Senate and House of Representatives had earlier passed a Joint Resolution of Disapproval under the little-used Congressional Review Act to revoke the rule which had been implemented in the final days of President Obama’s administration. Because the resolution was passed under the Congressional Review Act, federal agencies are now prohibited from reissuing similar regulations without congressional approval.” [Lexology, 4/6/17]
The Volks Rule Clarified That Missing The Deadline To Report And Injury Or Illness Did Not Mean That Incident Did Not Still Have To Be Reported. According to Lexology, “On April 5, 2017, President Trump signed the congressional resolution disapproving Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) rule, ‘Clarification of Employer’s Continuing Obligation to Make and Maintain Accurate Records of Each Recordable Injury and Illness,’ generally referred to as the Volks rule. […] OSHA said that the rule was to ‘clarify that the duty to make and maintain an accurate record of an injury or illness continues for as long as the employer must keep and make available records for the year in which the injury or illness occurred. The duty does not expire if the employer fails to create the necessary records when first required to do so.’” [Lexology, 4/6/17]
The Rule Defined OSHA’s Authority To Fine Companies That Failed To Report Injuries And Deaths Dating Back As Far As Five Years. According to The Washington Post, “President Trump signed a bill Monday that rolled back the second of two highly contentious Obama-era worker-safety rules that aimed to track and reduce workplace injuries, illnesses and deaths. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration rule sought to assert the agency’s authority to issue citations and levy fines to companies that fail to record illnesses, injuries and deaths that date back as far as five years.” [Washington Post, 4/4/17]
Assistant Secretary Of Labor For Occupational Safety And Health Dr. David Michaels: “This Rule Simply Returns Us To The Standard Practice Of The Last 40 Years.” According to a press release by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration Office of Communications, “The Occupational Safety and Health Administration on Monday will issue a final rule that clarifies an employer's continuing obligation to make and maintain an accurate record of each recordable injury and illness. […] The new final rule more clearly states employers' obligations. ‘This rule simply returns us to the standard practice of the last 40 years,’ said Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health Dr. David Michaels.” [Occupational Safety and Health Administration Office of Communications, 12/16/16]
Before 2012, OSHA Had Issued Citations For Violations Going Back As Far As Five Years. According to The Washington Post, “The Occupational Safety and Health Administration rule sought to assert the agency’s authority to issue citations and levy fines to companies that fail to record illnesses, injuries and deaths that date back as far as five years. The rule was adopted in January and came in response to a 2012 D.C. Court of Appeals decision — Volks Constructors v. Secretary of Labor — that limited OSHA’s power to issue citations for record-keeping violations older than six months. Before the lawsuit and court ruling, OSHA had for decades issued citations for violations that went back as much as five years, but Volks Constructors successfully challenged their authority in court.” [Washington Post, 4/4/17]
Labor And Employment Attorney Punam Kaji Said That Repealing The Volks Rule Was “Almost Like Undoing A Clarification.” According to Business Insurance, “The rule, which became effective Jan. 18, was OSHA’s attempt to affirm a long-held agency stance that has been upheld by the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission in cases dating back to 1993, but was rejected by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in 2012 in AKM L.L.C. v. Secretary of Labor (Volks). ‘The Volks rule was kind of a clarification on that statute of limitations issue for record-keeping citations so it’s almost like undoing a clarification,’ said Punam Kaji, a Houston-based attorney in the labor and employment and OSHA practices of Haynes & Boone L.L.P.” [Business Insurance, 3/8/17]
The OSHA Rule Was Adopted In January 2017 In Response To A 2012 D.C. Court Of Appeals Decision That Limited OSHA’s Power To Issue Record-Keeping Citations Older Than Six Months. According to The Washington Post, “The Occupational Safety and Health Administration rule sought to assert the agency’s authority to issue citations and levy fines to companies that fail to record illnesses, injuries and deaths that date back as far as five years. The rule was adopted in January and came in response to a 2012 D.C. Court of Appeals decision — Volks Constructors v. Secretary of Labor — that limited OSHA’s power to issue citations for record-keeping violations older than six months.” [Washington Post, 4/4/17]
The Occupational Safety And Health Act Required Employers To Record And Maintain Data On Work-Related Injuries And Illnesses Over A Five-Year Period, But Only Authorized OSHA To Cite Employers For Violations Within A Six-Month Period. According to Lexology, “The Volks rule is the result of a 2012 case in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia (AKM LLC dba Volks Constructors v. Sec’y of Labor). Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act, employers must record and maintain data related to work-related injuries and illnesses over a five-year period. The act authorizes OSHA to cite employers for violations of the record-keeping requirements only within a six-month time period.” [Lexology, 4/6/17]
According To AFL-CIO Safety And Health Director Peg Seminario, Catching Injury Reporting Issues Within The Required Six Month Time Frame Was “Nearly Impossible.” According to AL.com, “‘This means that in the worst cases OSHA won't be able to take enforcement action, and the employers are going to be able to keep doing what they are doing because there are no consequences,’ said Peg Seminario, Safety and Health director at AFL-CIO, a a [sic] national trade union center and the largest federation of unions in the United States. […] According to data collected by AFL-CIO, it would take Alabama's 24 OSHA inspectors roughly 114 years to visit every business in the state. ‘That makes it difficult to catch issues within the six month time frame and enforcement nearly impossible,’ added Seminario.” [AL.com, 4/7/17]
According To Former OSHA Officials, Six Months Is Not Enough Time To Identify Recurring Injury Reporting Problems. According to the Huffington Post, “The Senate voted 50-48 to strike down a rule issued late in Barack Obama’s presidency that requires large employers to keep an ongoing record of health and safety incidents. The Obama administration issued the rule in an effort to solidify what it considered long-standing policy at the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. By doing away with the rule, Republicans are effectively cutting down the length of time that employers in dangerous industries are required to keep injury records ― from five years to just six months. Former OSHA officials say that doesn’t provide enough time to identify recurring problems with particular employers or industries.” [Huffington Post, 3/22/17]