The change in administrations in Washington, D.C., is likely to mean many changes in the way federal agencies and departments operate, and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) probably is no exception.OSHA’s aggressiveness in enforcing workplace safety laws tends to vary by administration, sometimes stepping up inspections and coming down harder on violators, other times acting as more of an advisor and information provider. The agency also tends to reorder its priorities every so often, enforcing certain areas of compliance more forcefully than others.What might the new Obama administration mean for the way OSHA monitors compliance in institutional and commercial facilities? Steven Rupkey with Bureau Veritas Group, a health, safety and environmental consulting firm, offered his views on OSHA’s possible future at the April meeting of the National Security Council’s Chicago chapter. Rupkey made these observations:• OSHA is not likely to be a high priority for the first two years of the Obama administration, given the economic crisis and military commitments in Afghanistan and Iraq.• The general tone of OSHA’s approach is likely to shift to enforcement from its current one of collaboration with businesses.• OSHA will push for greater accountability for violators beyond just the work site and into organizations’ higher levels.• OSHA will need to reassert its role in enforcing compliance with workplace safety regulations or risk ceding some of its power to state agencies that seek to protect workers. Facility managers might want to keep a close eye on the changes in OSHA’s priorities and activities, but they also might want to strengthen relationships with state agencies monitoring workplace conditions. Once the new administration comes to terms with the national economy, it seems likely that, given the pace of changes it has enacted so far, new priorities and approaches are coming for workplace safety, no matter which level of government ends up being the driving force.
The Bottom line IS the bottom line. . . OSHA is not scaling back, irriguardless of an economic crisis or military commitments. I don't see this point being valid on any standing. Since OSHA's inception, progression has been the key. First Developement; then Implementation, Business Collaboration, but rest assured through all these phases Enforcement has always been Prevelant... Accountability for violators is just part of the Enforcement factor. I personally, don't forsee any relief in enforcement or downswing due to economic factors on the OSHA front, I base this synoposys on previous government administrations as well as economic factors, and military commitments during those administrations resulting in a steadfast pace.
Boy, Oh Boy, I wasn't far off course in my previous statement was I ?
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By William Pack - Express-News Federal inspectors will begin a safety crackdown next month at construction sites in Texas — the deadliest state in the nation for construction workers, U.S. Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis said Monday in San Antonio.
“Texas has the dubious distinction of having more workers die than any other state,” Solis said in an address to the American Society of Safety Engineers.
The state's construction sites have been the scene of 145 fatalities since 2007, including 67 in 2008 and 33 so far this year, labor officials said. The number of Hispanic workers killed in those incidents increased by 125 percent from 1992 to 2005.
“There will be no more excuses for negligence,” Solis told society members. “This is intolerable.”
Texas will receive more Occupational Safety and Health Administration inspectors beginning in July “for a concentrated effort to prevent injuries and fatalities at construction sites,” the secretary said.
“When these inspectors observe unsafe scaffolds, fall risks, trenches or other hazards, they are empowered to launch an immediate investigation,” Solis said. “As I have said since my first day on the job, the U.S. Department of Labor is back in the enforcement business.”
Her morning address to the society was part of a series of stops in San Antonio.
Doug McMurry, executive vice president of the Associated General Contractors of America in San Antonio, said he was neither surprised by that initiative nor concerned that San Antonio-area contractors will be among those found negligent under the new review process.
His association has implemented a successful safety program in conjunction with OSHA that performs safety inspections at area work sites and trains employees on safety issues.
“We work on that issue hard,” said McMurry. “San Antonio contractors and subcontractors take safety very seriously.”
As a result, he believes the area has been the site of fewer construction accidents than other areas. Only one construction death has been reported in the San Antonio area this year, a review of San Antonio Express-News archives showed.
A construction worker apparently fell to his death in January at a CPS Energy's new coal plant on Calaveras Lake.
The former California congresswoman, who was nominated to the labor post by President Barack Obama in January, talked to area dignitaries about the department's work force recovery activities and listened to their ideas about what would help area residents find jobs.
Solis said Texas has not been overlooked by federal stimulus spending. It has received $260 million in additional unemployment insurance benefits and other work force assistance, she said.
In a meeting with area veteran leaders, Solis announced that $600,000 in grants had been approved to help homeless vets in the San Antonio-based American G.I. Forum's National Veterans Outreach Program prepare for jobs.
“This administration really has its eye on Texas,” she said.
She ended the day by touring an H-E-B print-manufacturing plant that had won an OSHA safety award, Brooke Army Medical Center and the Center for the Intrepid.
Solis repeated throughout the day that the department was re-emphasizing its safety enforcement duties even as the economy continued to struggle.