As harvesting seasons approach, some state safety agencies have considered whether additional safety measures are needed to protect agricultural workers from potential exposures to coronavirus (“COVID-19”). In California, the state Department of Industrial Relations Division of Occupational Safety & Health (“Cal OSHA”) released specific guidance on April 7, 2020 for agricultural employers. While noting that … Continue Reading
On February 12, 2020, Kentucky’s Labor Cabinet’s Department of Workplace Standards has proposed an amendment to its regulation on employer’s obligations to report workplace injury and illnesses. Currently, employers in Kentucky must report all “work-related” incidents involving the loss of an eye, hospitalization of fewer than 3 employees, or amputation within 72 hours of the … Continue Reading
As previously addressed by the OSHA Law Blog, California’s Occupational Safety and Health Standards Board (“Standards Board”) considered a proposed standard that would allow employee access to their employer’s Injury and Illness Prevention Plan (“IIPP”). During its January 16th, 2020 meeting the Standards Board approved the proposed rule, which is now expected to take affect … Continue Reading
In a bipartisan 251 to 158 vote, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 1309, which would require the Department of Labor to develop a standard addressing workplace violence in the health care and social services industry. The bill would require that the Department of Labor develop and issue an interim rule on workplace violence prevention … Continue Reading
On September 30, 2019, OSHA issued a final rule for Occupational Exposure to Beryllium and Beryllium Compounds in Construction and Shipyards. Rather than revoke the ancillary provisions for these two industries as anticipated, OSHA “determined that there is not complete overlap in protections between the standards’ ancillary provisions and other OSHA standards.” OSHA delayed the … Continue Reading
In January 2017, as a departing gift from the Obama administration, OSHA issued a final rule with three separate standards regulating occupational exposures to beryllium in general industry, construction and shipyards. And, contrary to industry expectations and data in the rulemaking record, OSHA broadened the coverage of the construction and shipyard standards. The three standards … Continue Reading
Pursuant to 29 C.F.R. § 1910.134(f) employees are required to be fit tested prior to wearing tight-fitting respirators and the fit test administered must be using an OSHA-accepted fit test protocol. Appendix A to § 1910.134 outlines the procedures employers are required to use for fit testing and apply to all OSHA-accepted fit test methods, … Continue Reading
On June 27, 2019, California Governor Newsom approved Senate Bill 83. This budget bill contained a provision setting a September 30, 2020 deadline for Cal/OSHA to adopt a revised lead exposure standard. The bill requires Cal/OSHA to “revise the lead standards for purposes of general industry safety orders and construction safety orders, consistent with scientific … Continue Reading
Last May OSHA began enforcing various provisions of the agency’s requirements of the beryllium standard. Since then, for the construction and shipyard industries, only the permissible exposure limits and short term exposure limit are being enforced until OSHA undertakes additional rulemaking for those industries. It appears OSHA is taking steps toward rulemaking and has announced that … Continue Reading
On July 29th OSHA submitted a draft Request for Information (RFI) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) regarding Table 1 in OSHA’s construction standard for silica. If approved by OMB, OSHA intends to issue the RFI in the Federal Register to determine if revisions to Table 1 may be appropriate. On March 25, … Continue Reading
After receiving over 40 public comments and holding a public meeting on its proposed wildfire smoke emergency regulation, California’s Department of Industrial Relations, Division of Occupational Safety and Health (“DOSH”), has eased some requirements of the proposed rule. (If you would like more information on the proposed regulation, you can check out this previous OSHA … Continue Reading
It’s that time of year again…when federal agencies, including OSHA, tell us what is on the horizon for rulemaking activity. This week the spring semiannual regulatory agenda for federal agencies was published. This Regulatory Agenda provides a complete list of all regulatory actions that are under active consideration for promulgation, proposal, or review and covers … Continue Reading
OSHA’s Lockout/Tagout Standard at 29 C.F.R. 1910.147 regulates the control of exposure to unexpected energization during service and maintenance on machines or equipment. On May 18, 2019, OSHA issued a Request for Information (RFI) seeking “information regarding two areas where modernizing the Lockout/Tagout standard might better promote worker safety without additional burdens to employers: control … Continue Reading
In the wake of the most destructive wildfire season in California history, California’s Department of Industrial Relations, Division of Occupational Safety and Health (“DOSH”), has issued a proposed emergency regulation intended to protect workers from wildfire smoke. On April 15th, 2019, DOSH released the proposed regulation and scheduled a hearing to discuss the regulation for … Continue Reading
On March 11, 2019, OSHA issued a Request for Information (RFI) in the Federal Register seeking comments and information from stakeholders regarding the use of powered industrial trucks (PITs) for maritime (1915.120, 1917.43, 1918.65) construction, (1926.602(c), (d)), and general industries (1910.178). OSHA is considering revising current standards regarding powered industrial trucks and this information will … Continue Reading
Today OSHA published the final rule revising the Improve Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses regulation promulgated under the Obama administration. The final rule aligns with the proposed rule and rescinds the requirements for establishments with 250 or more employees to electronically file information from OSHA Forms 300 and 301. As is currently the requirement, these establishments … Continue Reading
Roughly eight years after the original promulgation of the final standard 29 CFR part 1926, Subpart CC – Cranes and Derricks in Construction, OSHA finally revises the requirements for operator certification. In August 2010 OSHA issued the final cranes and derricks in construction standard. As part of that standard, crane operators were required to either be certified … Continue Reading
It’s that time of year again…when OSHA tells us what is on the horizon for rulemaking activity. Earlier this week the fall semiannual regulatory agenda for federal agencies was published. This Regulatory Agenda provides a complete list of all regulatory actions that are under active consideration for promulgation, proposal, or review and covers regulatory actions … Continue Reading
Beginning in 2019, employers in California will now be on the hook for recordkeeping violations well beyond the six-month statute of limitations. Bill Number AB 2334 (Occupational injuries and illnesses: employer reporting requirements: electronic submission) co-sponsored by California Labor Federation and California Professional Firefighters was introduced by Thurmond (D) earlier this year, passed the State legislature and … Continue Reading
In response to OSHA’s announcement in May this year that the agency would not require the electronic submission of 300 Logs or 301 Forms for employers with establishments of 250 or more employees, Public Citizen, a consumer rights advocacy group, filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia challenging OSHA’s suspension of the requirement to … Continue Reading
OSHA recently announced that the compliance date for “specific ancillary requirements of the general industry beryllium standard” would be extended to December 12, 2018. At this time, OSHA is preparing a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking designed to clarify these provisions as well as addressing employers’ concerns with compliance. Compliance Date Extended until December 12, 2018 The compliance … Continue Reading
Today OSHA formally published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) in the Federal Register revising the Obama-era regulation, Improve Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses. The proposed rule rescinds the requirement for establishments with 250 or more employees to electronically submit information from the OSHA 300 Log and 301 Form and adds a requirement for covered establishments … Continue Reading
In a May post we noted that OSHA had moved closer to publishing a proposed rule revising the Obama-era regulation, Improve Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses by submitting the proposed rule to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review under Executive Order 12866. This review was completed yesterday, July 23, and now signals that … Continue Reading
On May 11th OSHA began enforcement of certain requirements of the beryllium standard. For generally industry, construction and shipyards this included the permissible exposure limits. Further, in general industry enforcement began for the requirements of an exposure assessment, respiratory protection, medical surveillance and medical removal. While OSHA began enforcement of some of the these requirements it had previously … Continue Reading
