Additional Blogs of Interest

Many work environments require workers to exercise care when performing their jobs. Some employees are exposed to dangers in the workplace on a daily basis.

The control of potentially hazardous energy  by using a  Lockout/Tagout (LOTO) system is one of the most common violations in the workplace. In 2019, LOTO is the fifth most frequently citation issued by the United States Dept. of Labor's Office of Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Failure to give proper attention to LOTO is a serious concern because it can lead to a negative impact on the health of your employees and your business. There were over 5,000 on the job fatalities in 2017,  which equates to an average of 14 deaths each day. The health of your business and employees provide great incentive for companies to follow the OSHA standard for the control of hazardous energy.

In late 2018, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's (OSHA) Denver regional office announced it would begin targeting safety and compliance inspections of breweries. The increase of inspections is a result of the Local Emphasis Program (LEP). LEP is an enforcement strategy designed and implemented at the Denver regional office to address the growing number of breweries in the Colorado area. It is intended to address hazards that pose risks to workers in the office’s jurisdiction. LEP will focus on beverage manufacturing and includes soft drinks, bottled water, wineries, distilleries, and ice.

 

Red Lake Nation Fisheries, Inc. is a business owned and operated by the Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians, a federally recognized Indian tribe located in Minnesota. All shares of the tribal enterprise are owned by the Red Lake Tribal Council for the benefit of the Red Lake Band and its members. Red Lake Nation Fisheries sells wild fish it catches from the waters located within the tribe’s reservation boundaries and only employs members of the Red Lake Band.  On November 4th, 2019, the U.S. Secretary of Labor filed a Petition for Review by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit of a final order of the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC). An OSHRC Administrative Law Judge issued an opinion regarding the authority  of OSHA over internal tribal matters that the Sec. seeks clarification on. 

R.K. Wallace Construction Inc. was cited for two workplace safety violations by the Occupational Safety Health Administration (OSHA) in early 2018. Though it is preferable not to receive citations from government agencies, citations may be a tool to bring attention to unsafe work practices that may harm their workers. OSHA imposes greater penalties for repeated violations when workplace safety hazards are not addressed. The case is an example of how viewing OSHA as a partner to worker safety and productivity can benefit employers.

The Equal Access to Justice Act (EAJA) was permanently enacted in 1985 to deter government overreach and wrongdoing. It allows individuals and entities to be awarded attorney fees and expenses when they are prevailing parties to administrative proceedings before the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's (OSHA) Review Commission. These proceedings are typically contests to citations, notifications, penalties, or abatement periods by employers. To be eligible for attorney fees and expenses under EAJA, parties are required to apply, “no later than thirty days after the period for seeking appellate review expires.” Contesting parties may also be corporations with a net worth less than $7 million that employ no more than 500 employees.

Employers bear the burden of proving they are not responsible when their employees violate Occupational Safetyand Health Administration (OSHA) standards. Employers are required to establish work rules and procedures to prevent violations, communicate the rules effectively to their employees, take steps to discover violations, and enforce the rules when violations are discovered. These requirements enforced by the Occupational Safety Health Review Commission (OSHRC) are crucial to protect both the liability of employers as well as the safety of their employees.

Bergelectric Corp. was hired to install the electrical system for the San Manuel Casino's renovation in California when an employee was injured on the job. On April 29, 2017, one of the company’s employees fell 24 feet while installing a conduit above the ceiling, causing him to suffer broken ribs and a spinal fracture. The case was referred to the federal Occupational Safety and Health  Review Commission (OSHRC), created to review possible violations of the Occupational Safety and Heath Act of 1970 (OSHA) , because the incident took place in a tribal casino located on a reservation under federal jurisdiction. The investigation conducted by a Compliance Safety and Health Officer resulted in the recommendation of several violations targeted at Bergelectric Corp's fall protection program and improper documentation of the fall and injuries.