#WorkforceWednesday: OSHA Issues COVID-19 Citations, Michigan Enacts Liability Shield, and States Battle for Telecommuter Taxes - Employment Law This Week®
As set forth on its website, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) was created in 1970 “to ensure safe and healthful working conditions for workers by setting and enforcing standards and by providing...more
On April 1, 2024, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) published its final rule clarifying that employees may designate a non-employee third party as their representative during an OSHA inspection. ...more
OSHA has released its “Top Ten” list of the most cited safety violations of last year. The largest number of violations were observed in the Construction Industry. The Top Ten include...more
Even the most experienced employers are sure to have questions from time to time about the nation’s workplace safety agency – the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). That’s where we come in. The Fisher...more
OSHA recently shared preliminary data for its Top 10 list in fiscal year 2023 which ended September 30, 2023. They are listed below in order of most frequently cited: 1. Fall Protection – General Requirements (1926.501)- ...more
For employers, particularly those with multiple worksites, controlling corporate OSHA liability is generally a key goal. An employer that accepts a machine guarding violation at its Texas facility, for example, may get hit...more
With maximum limits for Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) penalties increasing every year, knowing what to do when OSHA arrives at your door is more important than ever. That’s why we’re releasing this...more
With maximum limits for Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) penalties increasing every year – currently over $15,000 for serious/other than serious citations and more than $150,000 for a repeat and willful –...more
Ogletree Deakins recently launched its OSHA Tracker, which compiles and filters inspection and citation data by Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) region, state, city, industry, and date. Employers in Region...more
Workers’ Compensation law is a double-edged sword. While employers cannot avoid Comp liability based on the employee’s negligent behavior, the injured employee cannot sue the employer outside of the Comp system for damages...more
Severance: Labor Board Prohibits Employers from Restricting Employee Speech in Severance Agreements - In the Apple TV+ show Severance, employees of Lumon Industries may agree to a "severance" program in which non-work...more
The Nevada Occupational Safety and Health Administration (NV OSHA) recently announced an increase in penalties for workplace safety violations, as well as a renewed focus on specific industries for inspections. The new...more
Ogletree Deakins’ OSHA Tracker shows that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) conducted 988 inspections in Nevada in 2022, of which 2.5 percent resulted in citations. Reno, with twenty-seven citations,...more
The new year began with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) clearly establishing that it is focusing on enforcement in 2023. After announcing that it is expanding its instance-by-instance citation policy...more
Section 662(d) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSH Act) allows employees to file suit against employers seeking compliance with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) safety standards in urgent...more
Through the first month of 2023, OSHA signaled to employers that enforcement is an agency priority and that it will use a full range of mechanisms to hold employers accountable for workplace health and safety violations....more
Federal workplace safety officials just issued a press release announcing new enforcement guidance to make its penalties more effective in, as they describe it, “stopping employers from repeatedly exposing workers to...more
Late on January 26, 2023, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued a press release concerning a significant change in long-standing policy related to instance-by-instance issuance of citations that will...more
If any business doubts that the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has changed its practices with regard to monetary citations, a recent fine involving an Ohio vinyl tile manufacturer should...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The National Safety Council (NSC) released an update to its annual list of OSHA’s top-ten cited standards. The list provides a starting point for employers to review their own safety programs on an annual...more
Employers may be surprised to learn that North Carolina OSHA’s maximum penalties more than doubled on October 1 — and these penalties will increase every January, starting in 2023, to match the maximum penalties available to...more
The nation’s workplace safety and health watchdog agency recently announced that it will now cast a wider net to include even more workplaces in its enhanced inspection program known as the “Severe Violator Enforcement...more
Some employers might be surprised to learn that MSHA violations are increasingly common in states not typically associated with mine safety – and that you are much more likely to be cited for certain kinds of violations...more
The short answer is the proverbial attorney response, “it depends.” Under OSHA’s multi-employer citation policy, an employer may be held responsible for the violations of other employers where it could reasonably be expected...more