The Advisory Committee on Construction Safety and Health (ACCSH) of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration met on June 20, 2017, to learn about and give recommendations on OSHA’s proposed rule to extend the enforcement date for crane operator certification requirements of the revised Crane Standard, 29 C.F.R. 1926 Subpart CC, issued in 2010.  Click here to read my article.

The rule to lower permissible workplace exposure to beryllium is undergoing changes in a White House review, Occupational Safety and Health Administration deputy director for standards and guidance Maureen Ruskin has told safety specialists, as reported by Bloomberg BNA. The final rule took effect on May 20, 2017, and employers must comply with most of the rule’s requirements by March 12, 2018.  Click here to read my full article.

Rulemaking is underway to amend the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to remove the Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces Final Rule, the General Services Administration has said in guidance to federal agencies instructing them not to wait for the formal rescission to ensure certain contract clauses are not in new or existing government contracts and solicitations.  Click here to read the full article.

Employers do not have to report a worker as having an injury if they instruct the worker to do regular stretching exercises for a “minor discomfort,” the Occupational Safety and Health Administration has concluded in an interpretation letter released on May 24, 2017.

In the letter, OSHA responded to a question on whether “an employee’s continued participation in a daily stretching program constitutes medical treatment for recordkeeping purposes.”  To read my full article, click here.

Regulation from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration to reduce worker exposures to beryllium “to prevent chronic beryllium disease and lung cancer” took effect on May 20, 2017. An OSHA spokesperson said on May 22, however, that the agency received a petition to stay the effective date, which it is reviewing. The spokesperson pointed out that while OSHA considers the stay petition, the March 2018 enforcement date has not been changed.  To read the full article, written by Carla Gunnin, click here.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has issued two reports on the safe management of hazards by small businesses and storage facilities that use highly hazardous chemicals in business processes.  To read the full article, written by Nickole Winnett, click here.

In an email sent today to stakeholders, OSHA announced that it intends to delay the July 1, 2017 compliance date for the electronic submission of the 2016 Form 300A.  As part of the final rule, Improve Tracking of Workplace Injuries and Illnesses issued in May 2016, employers  had a phased in compliance deadline for the electronic submission of recordkeeping forms.  For 2017, employers with establishments with 250 or more employees and establishments with less than 250 employees but 20 or more in certain high-risk industries were required to electronically submit their 2016 Form 300A by July 1, 2017.  However, the secure website that OSHA intended to use for the submission of these recordkeeping forms has not been made available.

In the email, OSHA stated,

OSHA intends to extend the initial date by which certain employers are required to electronically submit their injury and illness logs.  The Recordkeeping Rule currently requires certain employers to submit the information from their completed 2016 Form 300A to OSHA electronically by July 1, 2017.  The proposal will extend this to a later date.  Currently, we do not have any additional information about the timeline for this.  We will let you know as additional information, including a proposed extension date, is available.

Stay tuned for additional information as it becomes available.