OSHA INSPECTION PROCESS

Eric Gislason, Executive Director

The National Association of Safety Professionals (NASP)

WHO IS OSHA?

OSHA was established upon President Nixon signing the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (OSH Act) into law.

OSHA’s Mission:

To assure safe and healthful conditions for working men and women by setting and enforcing standards and providing training, outreach, education and compliance assistance.

EACH EMPLOYER SHALL:

• (1) furnish to each of his employees

employment and a place of

employment which are free from

recognized hazards that are causing or

are likely to cause death or serious

physical harm to his employees;

• (2)comply with occupational safety and

health standards promulgated under

this Act.

• Comply with occupational safety

and health standards and all rules,

regulations, and orders issued

pursuant to this Act which are

applicable to his own actions and

conduct.

EACH EMPLOYEE SHALL:

GENERAL DUTY CLAUSE

STATE PLAN

• The South Carolina State Plan applies to all private and

public sector workplaces within the state with the exception

of: private sector maritime activities; employment on military

bases; Savannah River and Three Rivers Solid Waste Authority

private sector employment; federal government workers; and

the United States Postal Service (USPS).

INSPECTION PRIORITIES

OSHA focuses limited resources on the most hazardous workplaces in the following order of priority:

• Imminent Danger

• Death, Severe Injuries and/or Illnesses

• Worker Complaints

• Referrals (from Other Agencies)

• Targeted Inspections

• Follow-up Inspections

PHONE/FAX INVESTIGATIONS

• Low priority hazards- phone call from OSHA

followed by fax providing details on alleged hazards

• Employer must respond in writing within 5 days

• Employer must note problems identified

• Corrective actions taken or planned

• If satisfied, OSHA will generally not conduct an on-site

inspection

HOW DO I PREPARE FOR AN OSHA INSPECTION?

1. Plans and Programs

2. Training

3. Audits

4. Recordkeeping

WHAT DO I DO WHEN OSHA ARRIVES?

OPENING CONFERENCE

Compliance officer will

explain:

• Scope and purpose of

inspection

• Walkaround procedures

• Employee representation

• Employee interviews

• Should be kept brief as

possible

DOCUMENTATION REVIEW

• OSHA logs

• Baseline surveys for safety and health hazards

• HazCom and SDS’s

• PPE hazard analyses & JSAs

• Evidence of line accountability

• Site inspections

• Accident investigations

• Specialized programs (LOTO, CSE, BBP)

• PM records

• Safety Committee minutes and/or records of other methods of employee involvement

• Training records

• Annual evaluation of site’s safety and health program

The following documentation will be reviewed to determine if program

elements adequately address hazards at the site:

WALKAROUND

• The inspector - will check the safety

and health hazards in the complaint

or request a specific process to view

The Inspector may:

• Decide to check for other hazards

• Expand the inspection to cover the

entire workplace

• Interview representative employees

Inspector is looking for “low

hanging fruit”

WALKAROUND

• Inspectors may conduct

private interviews outside of

the workplace

• Workers have the option to

point out hazards and

describe past accidents,

illnesses, and worker

complaints

• Inspector brings “apparent

violations” to employer at

time of documentation

WALKAROUND

• Conditions should be typical on jobsite

• Management should not shut down equipment, open windows, or change conditions

• Inspectors are trained to look for those discrepancies and may create more in-depth inspection

• Do not hide issues

• Be honest and straight-forward

• Do not divulge information not specifically asked for

WALKAROUND

• Inspector may have to return on another shift or operation

• Watch any tests inspectors may complete (noise, dust, fumes, hazardous exposures)

• Request summaries of sampling results

• If inspector takes picture or video, employer should take the same picture or video

WALKAROUND

• Inspector may point out apparent violations

• Correct immediately if possible

• Violations will still be cited but prompt action will show good faith and may result in little to no fines levied

• Inspectors will keep confidential any trade secrets they observe

CLOSING CONFERENCE

• Inspector - required to have closing

conference, jointly or separately, with the

company and employee representatives

• OSHA - discuss “apparent violations”, ways

to correct hazards and deadlines

• 2nd closing conference - if needed

information (such as sampling results) not

initially available

CLOSING CONFERENCE

Inspector will advise employee

representative that:

• Employer must not discriminate against employees for

health and safety activity

• OSHA must be notified by employer if they chose to

file notice of contest or petition for modification of

abatement date

RESULTS

• OSHA may issue citations and fines for violations to OSHA standards and/or serious hazards

• OSHA must issue citation and penalty within 6 months of the violation’s occurrence

Citations describe:

• Requirements allegedly violated

• Proposed penalties

• Deadline for correcting hazard

Types of violations:

• Willful

• Serious

• Other-than-serious

• De minimis

• Failure to abate

• Repeated

APPEALS

• After citation - OSHA

offers employer an opportunity

for informal conference with

OSHA area director to discuss

findings

• The agency may work out a

settlement agreement to

resolve the matter.

Take the opportunity!

APPEALS

• Employers have 15 working days after

receipt of citations to formally contest

violations and penalties

• Sent by written notice to OSHA area

director

• If citation is not challenged, a final order

is made by the OSH Review Commission

FINE & SEVERITY REDUCTION

OSHA will often reduce the fines or severity associated with a violation based on:

1. Size of the employer

2.History of Violations

3.Written Plans and Programs

4.Good Faith Effort

DOES GETTING A “CLEAN BILL OF HEALTH” FROM OSHA MEAN YOU

HAVE A SAFE WORKPLACE?

REMEMBER, OSHA IS THE BARE MINIMUM!

• Progressive employers look at OSHA

compliance as one element of a “Safety

Culture”

• OSHA does not take into consideration, the

‘Human Dynamics” of safety

• More than 80% of workplace injuries are

due to At-Risk Behaviors

SAFETY MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS

SAFETY MANAGEMENT

SYSTEMS

• ISO 45001

• OHSAS 18001

• Injury Illness Prevention Program (I2P2)

• ANSI Z10

Examples include:

SAFETY MANAGEMENT

SYSTEM

Continuous improvement process that reduces hazards and prevents incidents

Systematic, explicit, and comprehensive process for managing safety risks

SMS provides for goal setting, planning, and measuring performance

Woven into fabric of organization

CULTURE

ELEMENTS

Management commitment

Employee involvement

Hazard identification

Corrective actions

Education and training

Program evaluation

PLANS, POLICIES, AND PROCEDURES

Safety Plan:

• Strategic action plan that forms part of the

business plan analyzing the current and foreseeable

risk and charts how the risks will be eliminated and

controlled

• Ensures management structure within your

company, making certain every worker clearly

understands their safety obligations, knows how to

comply, and is accountable

• Policies, procedures and processes include all

safety behavior, expectations, record-keeping, incident

reporting, and incident notification documentation

TRAINING AND INDUCTION

Everyone who enters your

workplace should receive training

on:

• Rules of your company

• Rules of the site

• Rules of the location they are

visiting

The training content will depend

on the level of risk to which the

person is exposed

MONITORING

MONITOR:

• To ensure that all risk has been

covered by a new risk

assessment that has been

carried out due to a change in

process

• When an investigation takes

place following an incident

SUPERVISION AND REPORTING

• Ensure your workers are carrying out their safety obligations is by adequate supervision

• Safety reporting at all levels, not just at board level

• Your workers need to know what safety looks like – what’s going right and what’s going wrong

• This can only occur when they receive safety feedback from YOU

WAYS LEADERSHIP CAN BE ENGAGED

• Establish clear lines of communication with employees

• Frequently discuss safety and health

• Exemplify safe behaviors

• Ensure a safe and healthful workplace

• Clearly define safety and health responsibilities

• Provide resources (funding, people, time)

• Set measurable input and output objectives

• Hold employees accountable

• Actively participate in safety and health efforts such as inspections, investigations, committees, meetings, training sessions, etc

• Support the facility or organization annual safety plan

• Make personal contact (1:1, teams, meetings)

• Encourage others to participate

• Recognize and reward good performance

WAYS EMPLOYEES CAN BE INVOLVED

Actively participate in safety

and health activities such as:

• Inspections

• Investigations

• Risk assessments

• Committees

• Meetings

• Training development

• Training sessions

• Safety and health teams

DEVELOPING EFFECTIVE SAFETY RULES

1. Have the people at every level participate. Get

pride of ownership.

2. Keep the rules to a minimum.

3. Have a good reason for every rule.

4. Keep the rules simple and clear.

5. Avoid any rule that goes against people’s normal

behavior.

6. Use a positive approach. Avoid a lot of “no” and

“don’t” rules.

WHY DO EMPLOYEES VIOLATE SAFETY RULES?

1. Lack of knowledge regarding the rule

2. Inconsistent enforcement makes the rule’s value questionable to the person

3. Perception of the rule as unnecessarily punishing to the individual

4. Expectation of personal benefit

5. Rules restricting use or operation of equipment are not compatible with the needs

6. Complacency

Unsafe

Conditio

n

Unsafe

Act

Act of

God

WHAT CAUSES

INJURIES?

ENFORCING COMPLIANCE

Enforcement takes the simultaneous

application of five methods of

discipline:

• Example by the leaders

• Commendation of good compliance

• Refresher education

• Reinforcement of motivation

• Discipline

• Punishment

SAFETY INCENTIVE PROGRAMS

• Base program on positive

reinforcement

• Do NOT base on lack of

injuries in the workplace

• Proactive vs. Reactive

• Leading indicators vs.

Lagging indicators

SUMMARY

• OSHA compliance is one element of a safe workplace

• OSHA inspections:

• Make certain you have safety plans & programs

• Training

• Audits and Proper Recordkeeping

• Abate hazards promptly and effectively

• Do not give OSHA a reason to come back

• Create an SMS

• Protection from liability, reduce worker comp and most importantly provide a SAFE WORKPLACE!

The Top Five Indications

That Your OSHA

Inspection is Going Badly

YOUR INSPECTION IS GOING BADLY IF:

5. The Compliance Officer asks where the closest extended stay motel is.

YOUR INSPECTION IS GOING BADLY IF:

4. The Compliance Officer has to wear

a dust mask to review your plans and

programs.

YOUR INSPECTION IS GOING BADLY IF:

3. The Compliance Officer begins the opening conference with:

“You have the right to remain silent”

YOUR INSPECTION IS GOING BADLY IF:

2. “60 Minutes” shows up to film the

inspection.

YOUR INSPECTION IS GOING BADLY IF:

1. The Compliance Officer is the Safety Director that you fired last month.

END