Top OSHA Official Signals Expanded Use Of Corporate-Wide Settlement Pacts

A top OSHA official made it clear to agency advisors that OSHA intends to continue its recent trend of pushing corporate-wide settlement agreements (CSAs) designed to abate hazards across a company's multiple operations. The agency has signaled greater interest in such agreements under the Obama administration, and an industry source says that even though CSAs require more abatement efforts they generally help employers avoid costly repeat and willful citations. The agency is “finding great value” in CSAs, Jordan Barab, OSHA deputy assistant secretary, told members of the National Advisory Com