ch 15 Flashcards
Occupational Safety and Health Act
The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (the first nationwide program for job safety and health) was enacted by the United States of America’ Congress. This legislature established health standards for all industries, and OSHA administers and enforces the law.
The original passage states that the OSH Act of 1970 exists to:
To assure safe and healthful working conditions for working men and women; by authorizing enforcement of the standards developed under the Act; by assisting and encouraging the States in their efforts to assure safe and healthful working conditions; by providing for research, information, education, and training in the field of occupational safety and health; and for other purposes. - OSH Act of 1970
Section 5(a)(1) states that: Each employer shall furnish to each of his employees employment and a place of employment which are free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm to his employees.
OSHA Employee Rights
Employees have the right to: A safe and healthful workplace Know about hazardous chemicals Information about injuries and illnesses in your workplace Complain or request hazard correction from employer Training Hazard exposure and medical records File a complaint with OSHA
Records
In addition to compliance with all of OSHA’s safety standards and laws, employers must also keep records of all reported occupational injuries and illnesses. Injuries that require hospitalization and fatalities must be reported to OSHA within eight hours of the incident.
Construction contractors must keep a “The Log of Work-Related Industries and Illnesses” (Form 300) and make this available for all employees to examine and review.
Criteria records
On Form 300, contractors must report work-related injuries and illnesses resulting in: multiple missed days of work restricted work activity job transfer medical treatment (beyond first aid) loss of consciousness death
Significant Illnesses & Injuries records
The OSH Act of 1970 also requires employers to record significant work-related illnesses and injuries, as diagnosed by a licensed healthcare professional such as:
Any needle stick, puncture wound, or cut resulting from an object contaminated with potentially infectious material such as blood (and other bodily fluids and tissues) or other potentially infectious material.
Any fractured / broken bone, cancer, or punctured eardrum resulting from a work-related exposure or incident.
Work-related (healthcare professionals) exposure and infection from tuberculosis as diagnosed by a licensed healthcare professional or by a positive skin test.
Cases where an employee must be medically removed from work per the OSHA health standard requirements.
When an employee experiences a standard threshold shift (STS)—recordable hearing loss from occupational exposure—in hearing or one or both ears, and the employee’s total hearing level is equal to or greater than 25 decibels (dB) in the same ear(s) as the STS. - OSHA Standard 1904.10
Site Inspections
Initially, OSHA’s compliance officers were authorized to conduct unannounced site inspections, and employers were not able to refuse admission under the OSH Act’s original provisions. This was changed in 1978 when the U.S. Supreme Court found these visits to be unconstitutional. Afterward, inspections continued, however, the OSHA’s inspector could only gain access to the place of employment with the employer’s permission, unless the inspector secured a search warrant under OSHA’s general administrative plan for OSH Act enforcement. A provision of the law allows the employer and an employee representative to accompany the inspector during his / her inspection of the work site.
In cases where there is imminent danger (safety or health), the compliance officer must notify the employer, employees, and the secretary of labor immediately.
Site inspection Employee Rights
Employees or their representatives have the right to file a complaint directly to the Labor Department (in writing) regarding a health or safety violation. They may demand an inspection of their employer’s premises, and if there are reasonable grounds for inspection—a danger or a violation—an inspection will be made as soon as possible. The employees (or their representatives) may also notify the inspector of a violation during a site visit. Whistleblower provisions protect the employees from being discharged or discriminated against for filing safety or health complaints.
site inspection Citations
If there is an OSHA standard violation, the OSHA compliance officer will issue a citation during his rounds of the premises. This citation will describe the nature of the violation, the penalty incurred, and the timeframe for correcting the problem. The employer has fifteen working days to contest this citation.
Penalties
OSHA provides an onsite consultation program for construction firms to diminish workplace hazards. Using this program allows contractors to identify job hazards and correct them (promptly) without receiving citations or penalties from OSHA.
Any state government that demonstrates the ability to enforce employment safety requirements as effectively as the federal government has the authority to do so. “State programs” conduct the worksite inspections and process the corresponding violations. These entities receive half of their funding from OSHA and must have standards as rigorous as the OSHA standards.
OSHA legislation provides for both civil and criminal penalties against employers.
Civil Penalties
Each nonseriou violations can incur fines (civil penalties) up $7,000, and if the employer is a repeat offender (or deliberately violates the law), he could be fined up to $70,000. Uncorrected violations can lead to penalties up to $7,000 per day.
Criminal Penalties
Criminal violations, in which deliberate violations resulting in an employee’s death, is punishable by six or more months of imprisonment, a fine of at least $10,000, or both.
It is the contractor’s obligation to make sure its employees are compliant with OSHA legislation. However, if the employer does not (with reasonable diligence) know of the employee’s violation, he can not be held accountable.
OSHA’s Multiemployer Policy
When there are multiple employers (contractors) on a work site, all employees are exposed to common hazards at the site. The employer of any employee exposed to a hazard on the job site will be held responsible, regardless of who created the hazard. Therefore, more than one contractor may cited for violating an OSHA standard. OSHA’s police does, however, provide an exception to contractors who may be excused from or may be less responsible for the violation. If all of the contractors are excused from responsibility, the contractor best able to correct the problem will receive the citation from OSHA.
To assign responsibility for safety violations, the current OSHA policy developed four categories of employers on construction job sites. However, the employer (contractor) may be classified under more than one category.
Four Classes Of Construction Employers on Job Sites
Creating Employer - employer who creates the hazard.
Exposing Employer - employer whose employees are exposed to the hazard.
Correcting Employer - employer who corrects the hazard.
Controlling Employer - employer who is responsible for the safety of the job site and is responsible for ensuring that the hazard is corrected.
HAZCOM
OSHA’s Hazard Communication Standard (HAZCOM) comprehensively addresses how to classify potential chemical hazards and the appropriate protective measures to use for employees. HAZCOM became effective for the construction industry in 1988 and was designed to preempt any state legislative or regulatory actions pertaining to chemical hazards.
Contractor Obligations
Written Plan
Labels
Safety Data Sheets (SDSs)
Training
