The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), like many federal agencies, has finite resources for carrying out its essential functions. It simply isn’t feasible, nor efficient or effective, for OSHA regulators to...more
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) defines a "willful" violation as one where the employer either knowingly failed to comply with a legal requirement or acted with plain indifference to employee safety....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
Federal OSHA (“Fed OSHA”) has long had a Severe Violators Enforcement Program (“SVEP”), intended to target employers who demonstrate “indifference to their OSH Act obligations by willful, repeated, or failure-to-abate...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
In 2022, health and safety agencies' focus continued to shift away from the near-constant COVID-related discussions of the past few years. COVID-19 is not in the rearview mirror, but the Biden Administration's comprehensive...more
To strengthen enforcement and improve compliance with workplace safety standards and reduce worker injuries and illnesses, the U.S. Department of Labor is expanding the criteria for placement in the Occupational Safety and...more
In recent months, EmployNews has reported on the dramatic increase in penalties assessed by the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) in situations where the agency believes that employers are not...more
If any business doubts that the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has changed its practices with regard to monetary citations, a recent fine involving an Ohio vinyl tile manufacturer should...more
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has announced that it has expanded employer eligibility for placement on its Severe Violator Enforcement Program (SVEP)....more
It’s hard to keep up with all the recent changes to labor and employment law. While the law always seems to evolve at a rapid pace, there have been an unprecedented number of changes for the past few years—and this past month...more
The nation’s workplace safety and health watchdog agency recently announced that it will now cast a wider net to include even more workplaces in its enhanced inspection program known as the “Severe Violator Enforcement...more
The United States Department of Labor announced in a September 15th news release that it is expanding the criteria for placement in the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (“OSHA”) Severe Violator Enforcement...more
OSHA Broadens Criteria for “Severe Violators.” On September 15, 2022, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) announced updates to its Severe Violator Enforcement Program (SVEP) to “broaden the program’s...more
The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) continues its efforts to scrutinize employers considered to have ignored or minimized safety issues discovered during prior inspections. OSHA previously...more
On September 15, 2022, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) published Directive Number CPL 02-00-169, a new instruction to its enforcement arm, updating policies and procedures for OSHA’s Severe...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: On September 15, 2022, U.S. Department of Labor’ Occupational Safety and Health Administration announced expanded criteria for placement in its Severe Violator Enforcement Program (“SVEP”). The new criteria...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: Seyfarth Shaw’s OSHA/MSHA group is at the ABA’s Occupational Safety and Health Law Committee Midwinter Meeting this week. Today, we heard some introductory remarks from the Solicitor of Labor, a panel who...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The Federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited Florida Roofing Experts Inc. – a Jacksonville, Florida, roofing contractor, for failing to protect workers from falls at two work...more
Yesterday our panel from Seyfarth’s Workplace Safety team led a briefing on OSHA regulation and enforcement under the Trump Administration. One year into the Trump Administration, employers’ expectations for a more...more
On January 20, 2018, the US Government formally shutdown pending approval of a federal spending bill by Congress. Though it appears Congress is working towards passage of a stop gap spending bill, in the interim, the shutdown...more
Trump’s victory in Tuesday’s Presidential election has conventional wisdom predicting that his administration will defang the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) in several ways. One, by ending or curtailing...more
The “pilot” Severe Violator Enforcement Program will impose more stringent inspection procedures, enhanced settlement provisions, and “public scrutiny” for employers that OSHA deems to have engaged in “egregious behavior and...more