#WorkforceWednesday: OSHA Issues COVID-19 Citations, Michigan Enacts Liability Shield, and States Battle for Telecommuter Taxes - Employment Law This Week®
Ohio employers have a duty to provide their employees with a workplace that is free from known dangers that could harm employees. Unfortunately, injuries can and do happen, even in safe workplaces....more
Many employers have a false notion that OSHA cannot issue a citation if there is no specific standard violated. The reality is, however, that OSHA has a catchall/gap filler provision that allows it to cite an employer...more
Following historical precedent, OSHA’s top ten cited violations for 2024 surprise no one. They all appeared on last year’s list, although their relative positions changed a bit. Fall protection (general requirements) remains...more
OSHA has a time limit on issuing citations. It must issue a citation within six months of the occurrence of any violation. The only exception to this rule is where the employer has concealed the violative condition or misled...more
Over the past several years, employers have seen a significant uptick in retaliation claims filed by employees and investigated by federal agencies. For example, in 2010, only approx. 30% of all charges filed with the EEOC...more
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
Last month, we reported on the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s expansion of its Severe Violator Enforcement Program (SVEP). SVEP designation marks employers for a higher number of safety inspections...more
In September 2022, the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued a directive expanding the scope of its Severe Violator Enforcement Program (SVEP). SVEP singles out employers that OSHA concludes have...more
OSHA penalties increased for citations issued in 2024 Consistent with the 2015 Inflation Adjustment Act, which provides for the annual increase in penalties under the Occupational Safety and Health Act by the previous year’s...more
Welcome to this edition of the FP Snapshot on Manufacturing, where we take a quick snapshot look at recent workplace law developments and examine how they impact employers in the manufacturing industry. In this edition, we’ll...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
Oregon lawmakers just passed more stringent civil penalties and expanded the scope of workplace safety investigations – which means employers need to immediately acquaint themselves with these modifications and grasp the...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
When Fisher Phillips attorneys recently secured a key victory over a state OSHA plan that was improperly trying to create a quota system to encourage investigators to issue citations and assess penalties, it opened the door...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
“There are three kinds of lies: Lies, Damned Lies, and Statistics” has famously been attributed to Mark Twain, who himself attributed it to British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli. Data, however, never lies....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 Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) issued a February 28th news release proposing penalties for Arizona Traders Co. (“ATC”). ATC is stated to operate an El Paso, Texas, jewelry metal-plating...more