OSHA is urging a district court to “disregard” recent claims from Public Citizen that it is able to detect companies that do not report worker injuries, part of a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) suit seeking the reports, arguing that the plaintiff misunderstood a recent agency statement on how it targeted enforcement against possible reporting violators.
OSHA is urging a federal court to dismiss a public interest group’s lawsuit that seeks to preserve provisions of the Obama-era injury and illness reporting rule that the Trump administration had suspended, charging the group lacks standing and that the suspensions are not judicially reviewable.
Public Citizen is seeking to bolster its push to compel release of employers' worker injury and illness data, arguing that recent OSHA statements undermine the Trump administration's claims in its lawsuit that releasing worker data through public records requests would deter reporting, and that it is unable to detect companies that do not report.
The Trump administration is expanding its rollback of an Obama-era injury and illness reporting rule with a new memo that critics say will curtail OSHA enforcement of the rule's anti-retaliation provisions, as dozens of Senate Democrats are urging the agency to drop a proposed rule that would limit the reporting requirements of the Obama rule.
An appellate court has upheld a lower court’s ruling limiting OSHA's authority to expand a facility inspection beyond the circumstances of a reported incident, faulting the agency's assertions that facility hazards and injury reports support “reasonable suspicion” of violations, though one panelist offered support for the agency's stance.
Industry groups are urging OSHA to broaden its proposed rollback of an Obama-era injury and illness reporting rule to further curtail requirements for electronic reporting of injury data and the rule's anti-retaliation provisions, while labor groups and Democratic state officials are arguing the proposed revisions are unwarranted and will harm worker safety.
Backing calls by Democrats and labor groups, NIOSH is defending the Obama OSHA's update to the injury and illness recordkeeping program, arguing that requirements for employers to submit detailed injury and illness data under the rule would inform worker protection efforts, and help OSHA prioritize facilities for enforcement.
Public Citizen is defending its request for a federal court to grant a preliminary injunction compelling the Trump administration to implement delayed requirements of an Obama-era worker injury and illness reporting rule, arguing that it meets the grounds for relief because it is harmed by the delay and is likely to succeed in the litigation.
Former OSHA officials are pointing to the Labor Department Office of Inspector General's (OIG) recent finding that half of all severe injuries go unreported as evidence that the Trump administration's deregulatory agenda is weakening OSHA oversight, blaming the repeal of an Obama-era record-keeping rule for under-reporting of severe injuries.
OSHA is rejecting aspects of the Labor Department (DOL) Office of Inspector General's (OIG) calls to bolster its severe injury reporting program to ensure employers report severe injuries and abate hazards, arguing that the burden of accurate reporting lies with employers, which are not required to prove hazards have been abated, and that existing agency guidance is adequate.