Two co-owned trailer manufacturing companies in Texas face a combined $949,800 in OSHA fines following an investigation that was prompted by employee complaints.
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Tags: days away from work, employee complaints, eye injuries, hearing test, toxic fumes
An OSHA investigation has found that Union Pacific Railroad retaliated against three employees for reporting safety issues and injuries. Now the railroad will have to pay a price.
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Tags: OSHA, retaliation, safety issues, Union Pacific Railroad, whistleblower
On April 28, 2011, OSHA turned 40 years old. Is the agency suffering an early mid-life crisis?
Tags: Chamber of Commerce, i2p2, inspectors, job killer, maximum fines, mid-life crisis, OSHA 40-years-old, permissible exposure limits, retaliation, unions
A railroad employee was injured at work, reported it and filled out required paperwork. Weeks later he was fired.
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Tags: fired for reporting injury, OSHA investigation, retaliation, safety bonus, Union Pacific
This much is clear: If a worker contacts OSHA about a workplace safety problem, and the company fires the employee for that reason, that worker is eligible for whistleblower protection. But this case is somewhat different.
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Tags: fire exit, retaliatory discharge, Wal-Mart, whistleblower
A driver raises safety questions about the truck his employer assigns him to drive. The company fires him when he refuses to drive the truck because it was leaking coolant. Does the driver get whistleblower protection?
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Tags: commercial driver's license, coolant leak, Surface Transportation Assistance Act, truck driver, whistleblower
An employee complains about unsafe equipment on the job. He’s fired the same day. Was this retaliation for complaining, or did his behavior justify his firing?
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Tags: insubordination, retaliation, safety complaint, truck driver, whistleblowing
OSHA shows it’s serious about stepping up action against companies accused of firing workers for making complaints about safety.
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It should come as no surprise to a company that it will face a retaliation complaint if it fires a whistleblower who complained to OSHA about workplace safety.
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In the wake of the April 20 oil rig explosion that killed 11 workers, an article by ProPublica, an investigative journalism website, quotes former BP employees as saying management pressured or harassed them not to report safety problems.
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Tags: BP, David Michaels, injury logs, pressured not to report safety problems
West Virginia has announced a step its governor hopes will improve workplace safety for miners and employees in all industries.
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Tags: safety hotline, Upper Big Branch mine, West Virginia, workers killed
“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
At least one state made good on threats to fine healthcare facilities if they didn’t protect their employees by following H1N1 flu standards.
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Tags: DOSH, H1N1, healthcare, respirators, swine flu
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
“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
An employee of a government contractor was laid off shortly after expressing safety concerns to upper management at his company. Now OSHA is getting involved.
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Tags: Bering Sea Eccotech, Camp Pendleton Marine base, whistleblower
OSHA takes employee safety complaints seriously, especially when a company has a record of previous infractions.
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Tags: employee safety complaints, Milk Specialties Co., seven-figure OSHA fine
Some tough talk about enforcement from OSHA’s interim administrator, Jordan Barab.
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Backed by more solid majorities in the House and Senate, Democrats have reintroduced the Protecting America’s Workers Act which aims to expand OSHA’s reach and increase the penalties it can issue for safety and health violations.
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Tags: H.R. 2067, increase OSHA fines, Protecting America's Workers Act
OSHA seems to be sending a message to employers via two recent whistleblower orders: When employees raise safety concerns, listen.
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Tags: employees raise safety concerns, Southern Air, UPS, whistleblower
A federal judge has ordered a commercial laundry to pay up in a case involving an employee who claims to have been fired for filing a complaint with OSHA about unsafe conditions.
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Tags: back wages, filing a complaint with OSHA, punitive damages, whistleblower
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