July 30, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Uh oh. An OSHA inspector shows up at your business. He uncovers a violation, and you don’t dispute it. How do you limit your company’s financial liability?
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Tags: excavation, lower OSHA fines, OSHRC, willful violation
July 20, 2010 by Fred Hosier
June 17, 2010 by Jim Burger
It’s full-speed ahead for OSHA, which is trying to make up for what it views as eight lost years during the Bush administration.
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Tags: fines, OSHA
June 15, 2010 by Jim Burger
OSHA has an explicit new message for the millions of workers who participate in the agency’s outreach training program: We’re on your side.
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Tags: David Michaels, Injuries, OSHA
June 11, 2010 by Fred Hosier
When federal OSHA announced a crackdown on state-run safety agencies, it said many of them were issuing fines that didn’t serve as deterrents to companies. Now it appears at least one state has heard that message loud and clear.
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Tags: hand injury, ignored warnings, record fine, state-run safety agencies
June 9, 2010 by Fred Hosier
OSHA has fined a Belvedere, IL, company $510,000 in connection with a December 2009 explosion that killed a bystander.
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Tags: bystander killed, explosion, NDK Crystals, willful violations
June 7, 2010 by Fred Hosier

The cries for less government have become more frequent these days, including in reader comments on this website when OSHA ramps up enforcement or rulemaking. One frequent argument is that OSHA’s regulations hurt the U.S. economy.
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Tags: less government, OSHA hurts U.S. economy, OSHA ramps up enforcement
June 3, 2010 by Fred Hosier
It’s not a secret anymore that OSHA under the Obama administration will focus more on enforcement than employer assistance programs. But a U.S. senator has introduced a bill to make one such program for companies a permanent fixture at OSHA.
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Tags: focus on enforcement, Sen. Michael Enzi, Voluntary Protection Program
May 21, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Seven-figure OSHA fines are becoming more common, especially in cases when the agency believes the company acted with willful disregard to safety.
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Tags: confined space, double fatality, willful disregard
March 22, 2010 by Fred Hosier

“Unscrupulous employers often consider it more cost effective to pay the minimal OSHA penalty and continue to operate an unsafe workplace than to correct the underlying health and safety problem. The current penalties do not provide an adequate deterrent.”
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Tags: David Michaels, death of an employee, OSHA penalty, prison time, Protecting America's Workers Act
February 22, 2010 by Fred Hosier

In the first year of the Obama administration, OSHA was busy handing out fines the likes of which hadn’t been seen for eight years. Here’s our rundown of 10 significant fines from the last 12 months, and what they mean for businesses:
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Tags: BP, Obama administration, OSHA fines, prison time, top 10
February 9, 2010 by Fred Hosier
The writing was on the wall when OSHA said last year it was reviewing its Voluntary Protection Program. But now it’s official: The program is slated to get less funding in the President’s proposed 2011 budget.
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Tags: compliance assistance, David Michaels, Hilda Solis, Voluntary Protection Program, VPP
January 28, 2010 by Fred Hosier
Some call it “pack journalism.” But no matter what it’s called, it’s becoming apparent that the general news media are hitching onto the “OSHA’s not doing its job” bandwagon.
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Tags: CAL-OSHA, DuPont, Las Vegas, media criticism, OSHA
January 25, 2010 by Fred Hosier

Criminal prosecution of companies where safety violations cause serious injuries or fatalities are rare in the U.S. With that in mind, it’s interesting to note how such cases are handled in another democracy.
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Tags: Australia, criminal prosecution, serious injury or death
January 12, 2010 by Fred Hosier
It turns out OSHA’s newly increased budget comes with some strings attached.
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Tags: low-hazard industries, OSHA inspections, small businesses
December 29, 2009 by Fred Hosier
As the economy changes, OSHA has signaled it intends to keep up with the times by focusing on new industries as they emerge.
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Tags: David Michaels, green jobs, NIOSH
December 7, 2009 by Fred Hosier
At least 10 companies with prior records of workplace safety violations have received millions in federal stimulus contracts in one state.
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Tags: cave-in, OSHA violations, stimulus contracts, trenches
December 4, 2009 by Fred Hosier
It’s no secret: Companies hardly ever pay fine amounts that OSHA initially issues. Sometimes, the amounts are reduced significantly. Is that about to change?
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Tags: Jordan Barab, OSHA penalty reductions, violation abatement
November 13, 2009 by Fred Hosier

“Sixteen workers are killed a day in the United States because of reckless negligence on the part of their employers,” according to a new Web site.
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Tags: 16 deaths per day, Protecting America's Workers Act, worker deaths
August 3, 2009 by Jim Burger
OSHA is doing something it hasn’t done in a long time: The federal agency has formed a task force to investigate a state workplace safety agency.
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Tags: Jordan Barab, Nevada, OSHA
July 31, 2009 by Jim Burger
OSHA isn’t going to wait around for the next big chemical release or explosion. Companies covered by the agency’s process safety management (PSM) standard shouldn’t be surprised to see inspectors on their doorsteps in the near future.
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Tags: inspections, Jordan Barab, process safety management
July 30, 2009 by Jim Burger
Does OSHA work for working people? No way, says David Michaels — the man President Obama will nominate to run the agency.
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Tags: agenda, David Michaels, OSHA
July 28, 2009 by Jim Burger
It’s been a little over a year since the feds announced the third-largest penalty in OSHA history.
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Tags: combustible dust, fines, Imperial Sugar, OSHA, settlements
July 22, 2009 by Jim Burger
No contrast between the Bush administration and the Obama administration is more stark than the dramatically different signals they’ve sent in selecting nominees to head federal safety and labor agencies.
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Tags: Joseph Main, MSHA, nominee, OSHA
July 20, 2009 by Fred Hosier
A federal investigation appears to show that Imperial Sugar Co. didn’t train many workers at its Port Wentworth plant about how to escape during an emergency.
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Tags: federal investigation, Imperial Sugar explosion, OSHA investigation Imperial Sugar
July 2, 2009 by Fred Hosier
For the last eight years, OSHA has de-emphasized recordkeeping inspections. That’s about to change.
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Tags: American Society of Safety Engineers, Jordan Barab, OSHA recordkeeping inspections
July 2, 2009 by Fred Hosier
OSHA is two-thirds of the way through the federal 2009 fiscal year. How are inspections stacking up this year?
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Tags: ASSE, high incident rates, OSHA inspections
July 1, 2009 by Fred Hosier

For the last eight years, OSHA has de-emphasized recordkeeping inspections. That’s about to change.
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Tags: ASSE, Hilda Solis, Jordan Barab, OSHA NEP, OSHA recordkeeping
July 1, 2009 by Fred Hosier
The interim head of OSHA says it’s time to look at restructuring OSHA fines.
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Tags: ASSE Safety 2009, Jordan Barab, OSHA fines
June 30, 2009 by Fred Hosier
U.S. Labor Secretary Hilda Solis had two messages for attendees at the American Society of Safety Engineers’ annual conference: We’re here to help companies provide safe workplaces, but we’ll also crack down on those who don’t.
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Tags: American Society of Safety Engineers, Hilda Solis, Jordan Barab, Safety 2009, Texas construction fatalities
June 22, 2009 by Fred Hosier
A government report critical of the Voluntary Protection Program was expected by many. OSHA’s response to the report is even more interesting.
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Tags: Government Accountability Office, Jordan Barab, OSHA enforcement, OSHA VPP, Voluntary Protection Program
June 5, 2009 by Fred Hosier
As U.S. companies are watching how OSHA changes under the Obama administration, the agency’s counterpart in Great Britain has launched a 10-point plan to tackle death and injury at work.
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Tags: death and injury at work in Great Britain, HSE safety strategy, recession and workplace safety
June 1, 2009 by Fred Hosier
Some tough talk about enforcement from OSHA’s interim administrator, Jordan Barab.
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Tags: Jordan Barab, OSHA enforcement, OSHA inspectors
May 27, 2009 by Fred Hosier
California officials have more than fines to use against companies that expose employees to extreme outdoor heat without adequate protection — and they’re using these measures against violators.
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Tags: expose employees to extreme outdoor heat, heat illness prevention regulations, Merced Farm Labor
May 1, 2009 by Fred Hosier