President Barack Obama has announced he intends to nominate Professor David Michaels to be the Assistant Secretary of OSHA. Professor Michaels is the interim chair of the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health at the George Washington University School of Public Health in Washington, D.C. If confirmed, Professor Michaels will join Acting Assistant Secretary of OSHA Jordan
July 2009
OSHA Targets Federal Agencies and their Contractors with New Enforcement Program
By Bradford T. Hammock on
Posted in OSHA Enforcement
OSHA has announced it is targeting for inspections federal agency workplaces staffed by federal employees or by contractors whose work is supervised on a day-to-day basis by federal agency personnel. The agency initiative will focus enforcement resources on those worksites experiencing a high number of lost time injury cases. Employers who work as contractors to federal agencies…
OSHA Launching Construction Safety Initiative in Texas
By Bradford T. Hammock on
Posted in OSHA Enforcement
Citing the high number of construction fatalities in Texas, Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis announced recently that OSHA will start a new enforcement initiative targeting the construction industry in that state. Secretary Solis made the announcement in San Antonio at the annual conference of the American Society of Safety Engineers. Construction employers in Texas should take note…
OSHA’s Recordkeeping National Emphasis Program – Are You Prepared?
By Bradford T. Hammock on
Posted in OSHA Enforcement
When OSHA launches its recordkeeping National Emphasis Program (NEP) later this year, employers cannot accuse the agency of inadequate warning. Since early March, OSHA officials have signaled the impending NEP. Employers should take time now to review their OSHA recordkeeping logs and practices to prepare for an NEP inspection.
Just last week, OSHA reminded us how seriously…
OSHA Issues New Guidance to Employers on Heat Stress
By Bradford T. Hammock on
Posted in OSHA Guidance
With summer weather starting to sweep across the country, OSHA has issued guidance on protecting workers from the adverse health effects of heat at work. Employers should take note as OSHA has called excessive heat a recognized hazard and has cited employers under the General Duty Clause of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970…