NFIB

8. Occupational Health and Safety Act (OSH Act)
10/17/2003

Overview: The OSH Act requires that employers provide a safe and healthy workplace.

Application: All employers are covered by the OSH Act, except:

• partners; or
• self-employed persons;
• farms where only immediate members of the family are employed.
  
  

Inspections: Every business covered by the OSH Act is subject to inspection. Below are some helpful guidelines for the inspection:

• Anything said to OSHA by a supervisor or manager will be recorded, and if it adverse to the employer's position it will be construed as an admission of liability in the event of a citation proceeding or criminal prosecution.
• The employer's representatives need not say anything to OSHA about the workplace conditions; the representative need only provide logs and other documents required to be kept.
• Be familiar with the forms used by OSHA to record information gained from inspections so that answers to questions will be recorded on those forms as favorably as possible.
• Immediately correct any apparent hazards disclosed during the inspection; this will not prejudice the employer's right later to contest a citation, and may enhance the employer's ability to obtain credit for good faith and lessen the chance for issuance of a "willful" citation.
• After an inspection, give the inspector a name, title, and address to whom any citations should be sent; otherwise, valuable time will be lost while mail travels within the company.
• Do not exaggerate the quality of safety/health conditions when describing them to an OSHA inspector.

Record-keeping Requirements

There are 5 important steps required by the OSH Act:

1. Obtain a report on injuries requiring medical treatment (except first aid); and
2. Record injuries in the log (OSHA Form 300) according to the instructions; and
3. Prepare a supplementary record (OSHA Form 301) of occupational injuries and illnesses for recordable cases; and
4. Every year, prepare the annual summary (OSHA Form 300A); post it no later than February 1, and keep it posted until April 30 (A good place to post it is next to the OSHA workplace poster); and
5. Keep these records for at least 5 years.

Exemptions

Small employers: Although subject to the OSH Act regulations, employers with 10 or fewer employees are exempt from the record-keeping requirements (unless required by your State). A list of exempt industries can be found at:

www.osha.gov

Exceptions: Employers exempt from the record-keeping requirements should:

• Report fatalities or multiple hospitalization accidents; and
• Maintain a log of occupational injuries and illnesses and make reports if notified in writing by the Bureau of Labor Statistics that you have been selected to participate in a statistical survey.

Standards

• walking and working surfaces, ladders, platforms, scaffolds, and means of egress
• ventilation, noise, radiation, and hazardous or toxic liquids and air contaminants
• personal protective equipment use and maintenance
• hazardous materials such as acids, corrosives, explosives, flammable and toxic substances
• workplace sanitation
• medical facilities
• materials handling and storage
• use, maintenance and construction of cranes and industrial vehicles
• welding equipment and procedures
• equipment, tool, and machine guarding
• electrical apparatus
• carcinogens
• hazard communication
• access to records
• process safety management
• blood borne pathogens
• confined spaces
• asbestos
• control of hazardous energy
• fall control

Notices:

Employers should post the Job Safety and Health Protections workplace poster and annual summary of injuries and illnesses where employees can readily see them. A copy of Job Safety and Health Protections notice is available in the NFIB Legal Foundation's new Federal Employee Handbook for Independent Business Additional Information

For more information, call OSHA at (800) 321-6742 or visit www.osha.gov.