OSHA is asking the full U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit to review the recent three-judge panel ruling that vacated the agency's controversial 2015 policy narrowing an exemption from its process safety management (PSM) standard for retailers.
OSHA is widely expected to appeal the recent federal court ruling that it unlawfully targeted a poultry processing plant for an expanded inspection, opening the door to a broader precedent that would either give companies new authority to resist broader inspections, according to industry, or affirm the agency's discretion to protect workers, labor advocates say.
A federal district court has blocked OSHA's plan for an expanded inspection of a poultry processing facility because the agency's sectoral enforcement program arbitrarily and unfairly targeted the plant for inspection beyond the circumstances of a reported incident -- a ruling that could limit OSHA inspection authority under its emphasis programs.
A senior Justice Department (DOJ) official says prosecutors implementing a recent policy aimed at leveraging environmental laws to impose stiffer penalties for workplace violations are eyeing companies’ internal environmental management systems (EMS) and safety cultures while crafting settlements to ensure future compliance and improve attitudes toward worker safety.
A former top OSHA official says the agency is “an overmatched regulator” that rarely uses its full authority to protect workers, and is urging the agency to partner with federal, state, and local regulators, as well as the public, to better focus inspections on serious hazards.
Industry attorneys expect that OSHA will challenge the recent appellate ruling that vacated its 2015 policy that subjected more fertilizer retailers to its process safety management (PSM) rule, noting that the decision limits OSHA's ability to interpret its standards, and will bolster employer challenges to enforcement actions before the agency's review commission and in courts.
Striking a blow to the Obama administration's efforts to bolster facility safety, a federal appeals court has vacated OSHA's controversial 2015 policy narrowing the exemption from its process safety management (PSM) standard for retailers, finding the agency unlawfully issued the memo expanding the reach of its facility worker protection rule without public input.
Local officials from a California county where numerous industrial facility accidents have occurred in recent years are urging OSHA to strengthen its facility worker safety program by covering additional substances and hazards, and adding requirements for facilities to conduct new analyses and emergency drills.
Chemical and petroleum industry groups are urging OSHA to halt or minimize potential revisions to its process safety management (PSM) rule, raising new arguments that the agency lacks statutory authority for some possible changes, while urging officials to streamline any new requirements with upcoming EPA rules.
The Center for Progressive Reform (CPR), a group that advocates for strict health and safety protections, is renewing long-standing calls for OSHA to issue a national standard to protect workers from heat-related injuries and death, an effort that will likely take shape in the next administration.