Barab: Current fines not enough of a disincentive
July 1, 2009 by Fred HosierPosted in: In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views, OSHA news, cost of safety, enforcement
The interim head of OSHA says it’s time to look at restructuring OSHA fines.
At the American Society of Safety Engineers’ (ASSE) Safety 2009 conference, Jordan Barab noted that the last time OSHA fines were restructured was in 1990.
Right now, the average fine for a serious violation is between $900 and $1,000. Barab says that’s not enough of a disincentive to force companies to address safety hazards.
It would be up to Congress to change OSHA’s penalty structure, and there is a bill introduced to do just that.
Ultimately, Barab says he’d like OSHA fines to be comparable to those EPA is able to issue for environmental violations.
He’d also like Congress to make it easier for OSHA to bring criminal penalties for egregious violations.
Check back with SafetyNewsAlert.com all this week for news from ASSE’s Safety 2009 conference.
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Tags: ASSE Safety 2009, Jordan Barab, OSHA fines
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July 6th, 2009 at 3:31 pm
Injury and death rates have been going down for the past several years and instead of lauding the progress, Barab wants to say we’re not getting better at what we do. These government lackeys juust want to get more regulation into the workplace. It’s no wonder companies leave the US - too much government regulation and taxes.
January 28th, 2010 at 10:40 am
[...] Reviewing OSHA’s penalty structure. Specifically, OSHA’s Acting Administrator, Jordan Barab, has remarked that “the average serious penalty is now below $1,000” and “that doesn’t provide much of a disincentive.” [...]
March 9th, 2010 at 8:49 pm
I feel what Jordan Barab is doing is what is necessary in our work environments today. I work in both areas and find that compliance in the Environmental arena are taken much more serious than those from work place safety and health requirements. In my opinion OSHA got too watered down to place the most effective stimulus for companies to manage risk effectively rather than assume risk and pay for non compliance. I especially appreciate Jordan Barabs efforts to criminalize egregious violations of the OSHA standard. My experience indicates that those companies that make a serious effort to manage risk in the work environment also manage to make the highest profits an argument that is counter to what most people believe. I do hope these efforts establish and maintain the highest levels of safety and health for the workers in this country.