How to avoid OSHA citations

A workplace inspection by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration may not be avoidable, but your company can avoid costly OSHA citations. The best way to do this is by:

• Ensuring regulatory compliance.

• Conducting hazard assessments and safety audits, and correcting any hazards found.

• Developing and implementing a written safety and health program.

• Training employees to protect them from safety hazards.

• Keeping accurate records.

Regulatory compliance

An OSHA inspector’s primary task during an inspection is very simple: to find non-compliance issues. If the inspector doesn’t find any, he or she won’t issue a citation. And if violations are found, the officer can choose to expand the scope of the inspection. Therefore, it is paramount that employers identify the requirements that apply to their workplaces.

Also, stay abreast of regulatory changes. Being compliant now doesn’t mean a company will always be compliant Regulations and policies change, and new ones are issued.

OSHA has increased rulemaking activity by issuing several proposed and final rules over the last four years. The most recent final rule of significance was the Walking-Working Surfaces rule, which includes major fall protection, training, and inspection changes affecting every employer.

Hazard assessment

Conducting routine hazard assessments is an excellent way to find hazards in the workplace before OSHA does. Focus on the “Big Four”: falls, electrocutions, caught-in or between, and struck by. OSHA is placing increased focus on these hazards, which are the leading causes of fatalities. In the past, OSHA focused on these hazards only in the construction industry; but now, the agency is targeting these four hazards in general industry, as well.

If an OSHA compliance officer finds that an employer has an otherwise good safety and health program, the officer will focus mainly on these four hazard areas.

Safety and health program

The benefits of developing and implementing a safety and health program are varied and many, but perhaps the greatest benefit is reducing injuries and illnesses.

OSHA says that businesses spend $170 billion a year on

costs associated with occupational injuries and illnesses, which comes straight out of company profits. But workplaces that establish a safety and health program can reduce their injury and illness costs by 20 to 40 percent, and better yet, reduce their likelihood of being inspected by OSHA.

If not done already, establish a written injury and illness prevention program that outlines the hazards in the facility and how they are controlled. This is another way to “find and fix” hazards before OSHA finds them. And, it is also an eligibility requirement for receiving the “good faith” penalty reduction if cited by OSHA.

Training

Ensure employees are trained for the tasks that they perform. OSHA compliance officers are now verifying not only that required training has been