A recent case in the 7th Circuit, upholding the criminal convictions of two supervisors based on their falsification of health and safety records, serves as an important reminder that although uncommon, the Occupational Safety and Health Act does provide for criminal penalties.
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A recent standard interpretation letter dated April 29, 2025, addressed whether employers may use software-generated documents in place of the OSHA-required injury and illness recordkeeping forms, specifically Forms 300 (injury log) and 300A (annual summary).
Read MoreAs previously discussed on our blog, in September of 2024, New York passed a law requiring retail employers with 10 or more retail employees anywhere in New York to take certain safeguards to protect employees from workplace violence with staggered compliance deadlines. The first deadline of June 2, 2025, required implementing a model workplace violence policy and model training to be published by NYS DOL (or a policy/training that equals or exceeds the model’s standards). On May 29, 2025, NYSDOL released its model workplace violence training policy model training (in both English and Spanish) and FAQs. See here.
Read MoreToday, OSHA Chronicle (“OC”) sits down with safety and health consultant John Bednarik (“JB”).
OC: Hi John. To start, can you share your safety and health background with our readers?
JB: Of course. Prior to starting my own safety and health consultant company which focuses on safety and accident investigations for OSHA compliance in the workplace, I spent 22 years working for OSHA of which 5 of those were as an Assistant Area Director. During my time with OSHA, I conducted approximately 1000 on-site inspections and supervised about another 1000. Approximately 130 of those investigations were fatality cases. I also have been consulting labor law attorneys with their construction cases. Prior to OSHA I was a tool and die maker, tool room manager, plant manager in machine trades for 30 years which served as a segue into Federal OSHA.
Read MoreThe Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission (OSHRC) is the independent agency that hears ALJ appeals of OSHA citations. OSHRC consists of three members who are appointed by the President, with the advice and consent of the Senate. OSHRC’s only remaining Commissioner, Cynthia Attwood’s term expired April 27 and she has announced her retirement. With her retirement, OSHRC is without a single Commissioner for the first time since the early 1990s when it was without any Commissioners for two months.
Read MoreAs the new Administration has emphasized that federal deregulation is a priority, it is expected that many states will step into the anticipated void left by federal labor agencies such as OSHA. Not surprisingly, New York is one of those states.
Read MoreBy an order dated December 26, 2024, ALJ Brian Duncan vacated a general duty clause violation against a security company that provided security services to a mall. In the tragic shooting, a customer shot and killed two people, including a mall security guard employed by the company. In vacating the citation, the ALJ made a number of rulings. First, he rejected the notion that the shooter himself (or a specific incident) could serve as the hazardous condition forming the basis of an OSHA citation. However, he ultimately found that the Secretary established a direct nexus between the work of security guards and the general hazard of workplace violence, opining that “violence at the hands of strangers” was considered plausible by both the company and industry experts and that the Secretary established employer recognition of the hazard of general workplace violence. However, the ALJ then provided a detailed analysis of whether the Secretary met her burden of proof when advancing proposed abatement measures and concluded she did not. Specifically, the ALJ rejected the four abatement measures proposed by the Secretary: (1) developing and implementing an effective workplace violence program including the creation of a threat management team; (2) implementing an effective system to identify, track, and communicate issues related to high-risk people of the mall’s firearms prohibition; (3) developing, training security officers on, and enforcing a strict no-approach policy for high-risk situations; and (4) conducting re-training on workplace violence for security officers and supervisors that includes internal and external risk factors for violence in the retail and security industries.
Read MoreHappy New Year!
After approximately a decade of discussing a properly fitting PPE Rule in the construction industry, OSHA’s Final Rule becomes effective January 13, 2025. The Final Rule explicitly requires that PPE is selected to ensure that it “property fits” affected employees.
OSHA’s website recently added advice to employers, particularly in retail and warehousing, to help keep their employees safe this holiday season and linked a video on the Department of Labor’s YouTube page containing nine holiday season safety tips. The tips include: (1) training workers on safety work practices in a language they understand; (2) providing hands-on training for new workers on using equipment safely; (3) ensuring delivery service and warehouse employees wear bright, visible clothing; (4) preventing injuries by properly stacking materials and making sure workers stand clear when doors are opened for unloading; (5) creating a detailed and flexible staffing plan to help reduce workplace stress; (6) implementing an emergency action plan when large crowds are expected; (7) making sure entrance and exit signs are visible; (8) encouraging workers to report safety and health issues; and (9) understanding seasonal workers have the same rights as full-time workers.
Read MoreFollowing 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 the most cited citation and has held the spot for the fourteenth consecutive year.
The full list in order appears below:
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