For the last several years, OSHA has expressed concerns regarding a host of employer practices it believes may result in underreporting of injuries and illnesses as depicted by several recent high-profile cases of alleged employer underreporting. Heightening OSHA’s interest is the position taken by some stakeholders that the annual injury and illness statistics published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) underreports the true number of workplace injuries and illnesses due, in part, to employer incentive programs that discourage employees from reporting injuries and illnesses. The Agency has stated it will issue a final rule in the fall of 2015 that may make certain safety incentive programs illegal under OSHA standards and, just recently, OSHA sent such a proposed rule to the Office of Management and Budget (“OMB”) for review. If the Agency does issue this final rule, it may change the landscape for many employers who have had success with such programs in the past.

To read the full article, which I wrote for Wolters Kluwer’s Employment Law Daily, click here.

 

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Photo of Bradford T. Hammock Bradford T. Hammock

Brad Hammock is a Principal in the Washington, D.C. Region office of Jackson Lewis, practicing exclusively in the safety and health area. He heads Jackson Lewis’ Workplace Safety and Health practice group.

He joined the firm in 2008 after serving for ten years…

Brad Hammock is a Principal in the Washington, D.C. Region office of Jackson Lewis, practicing exclusively in the safety and health area. He heads Jackson Lewis’ Workplace Safety and Health practice group.

He joined the firm in 2008 after serving for ten years as an OSHA attorney within the Department of Labor including, most recently, for more than three years as lead counsel for safety standards. As lead counsel, Mr. Hammock managed attorneys who worked with OSHA on regulatory initiatives, compliance assistance, and enforcement policy. He had direct responsibility for more than 20 major OSHA regulatory initiatives, including rulemakings on personal protective equipment, confined spaces, and crane safety.

Before his promotion to lead counsel, Mr. Hammock worked as a regulatory attorney for OSHA, focusing on ergonomics. He was one of the lead attorneys during the development of the OSHA ergonomics standard in 2000 and had primary responsibility for the Department of Labor’s comprehensive approach to ergonomics in 2002. Mr. Hammock is widely regarded as one of the nation’s most experienced attorneys on ergonomics.

Education

  • University of Virginia/Bachelor of Arts in American Government/1992
  • Syracuse University College of Law/Juris Doctor, magna cum laude/1996

Bar Admissions

  • District of Columbia
  • Virginia