Democratic lawmakers are renewing their calls for the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) to revisit its recent decision reversing an Obama-era “joint-employer” precedent that had prompted strict OSHA enforcement guidance, citing conflict of interest concerns with one of the board's GOP members that were recently confirmed by an internal inspector general (IG) report.

In a surprise to some industry observers, EPA appears to be downplaying prospects that it will appeal a recent precedential ruling that rejected its efforts to limit litigation over its denial of a citizen petition under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) to the administrative record, saying the agency will fight the litigation "on the merits."

As the Senate debates immigration policy, labor unions are renewing their calls to provide a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants, saying providing such a path will help protect illegal immigrants from being exploited in unsafe working conditions.

With online companies dominating the transportation and delivery sectors, the rise of contracting jobs is at an all-time high, though the trend is raising concerns about how OSHA will address the growing number of workers classified as “independent contractors” who are not covered under the Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act.

The Democratic National Committee (DNC) is criticizing President Donald Trump's rollback of certain OSHA worker safety and other labor protections during his first year in office, teeing up potential issues Democrats plan to raise as the 2018 midterm elections loom.

Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer's (D-NY) recent call for OSHA to establish a system to notify first responders when a local company is cited for serious violations involving flammable materials is drawing criticism from both labor and industry officials who are raising doubts about its effectiveness in increasing safety.

The Trump administration is touting an increase in OSHA inspections in fiscal year 2017, the first uptick since 2012, despite a former Obama OSHA official's claims that declining agency resources are harming workplace safety, a trend the official expects to continue despite the Trump Labor Department's (DOL) lifting a freeze on hiring inspectors.

Top Democrats are warning that a member of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) who recently joined a majority decision to reverse the board's Obama-era ruling that expanded OSHA enforcement by broadening the definition of a “joint employer” had a potential conflict of interest, signaling a continuing challenge to the decision.

An industry attorney says that a recent OSHA settlement with a New York recycling company resolving violations of the agency's bloodborne pathogens standard suggests the agency is expanding its interpretation of the standard despite the Trump OSHA's shelving Obama-era plans for a rule bolstering protections against the risk.

The poultry industry is downplaying a recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) report that urged OSHA and other agencies to step up scrutiny of worker safety in the sector but nevertheless indicated it would continue to make improvements in its safety practices.