Perspectives on OSHA

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On January 13, the U.S. Supreme Court granted emergency relief to plaintiffs challenging OSHA’s COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS), and issued a stay on enforcement of the rule.

On December 17, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit dissolved the stay order that prohibited enforcement of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration COVID-19 Emergency Temporary Standard (ETS).

On Thursday, November 4, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) published an emergency temporary standard (ETS) making good on President Biden’s pledge to require private employers with 100 or more employees to implement vaccination-or-testing mandates for their employees.

Large employers should soon have specific guidance on complying with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) vaccine and testing mandate.

On January 21, 2021, the Biden Administration issued an Executive Order outlining its objectives with respect to worker health and safety during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

With the WHO declaring the coronavirus a worldwide pandemic and President Trump declaring a “National Emergency to Fight COVID-19,” it is imperative that employers understand the requirements of the OSH Act and its standards to ensure that work and the workplace are safe for their employees. 

In the underlying case, OSHA issued citations to Wynnewood Refining Co., LLC related to a steam boiler powered by natural gas at the company’s oil refinery in Wynnewood, Oklahoma.

The 2019 edition of Legal 500 US has rated 49 Arent Fox LLP attorneys as national leaders in their field. In addition, 15 of the firm’s practice areas were ranked among the best in the country.

In a groundbreaking decision, the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission on March 4, 2019 ruled for the first time that the Occupational Safety and Health Act’s (OSH Act) general duty clause obligates employers to protect their workers from workplace violence.

In one of the Trump administration’s first official acts, White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus issued a memorandum on January 20, 2017 implementing an immediate freeze on all pending regulations until they have been reviewed and further action has been approved.

On December 29, 2016, the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit unanimously vacated two citations levied against Delek Refining Ltd. by the US Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

On December 29, 2016, a three-judge panel from the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit unanimously vacated two OSHA citation items issued to a Delek Refining Ltd. (“Delek”) facility for alleged safety violations that occurred years prior to its ownership of the refinery.

PSM STANDARD – Recent Fifth Circuit opinion limits OSHA’s power to issue citations for failing to address PHA and audit findings.

The standard, which was sponsored by several labor unions, will require covered healthcare providers to develop workplace violence prevention plans, training programs, and recordkeeping procedures to track certain incidents of workplace violence. 

In a major blow to OSHA’s ongoing efforts to modify existing safety and health standards through informal agency guidance, a unanimous panel of federal judges recently invalidated a July 2015 OSHA memorandum that had significantly narrowed the PSM standard’s retail facility exemption.

When the Occupational Safety and Health Administration issues a “Citation and Notification of Penalty,” employers should always begin evaluating the potential financial impact the OSHA citation could have on the company.

OSHA substantially revised the 1994 Hazard Communication Standard in 2012 and by June 1, 2015 most employers have to be in full compliance with the new requirements.

In its budget proposal for Fiscal Year 2016, the Obama Administration has asked Congress to increase civil penalties for violations of the Occupational Safety and Health Act. As the proposal notes, OSH Act civil penalties have been increased only once since the law was passed 44 years ago.

In addition to reporting all employee fatalities within eight hours, employers will now also have to report work-related in-patient hospitalizations of one or more employees, amputations, and physical eye loss within 24 hours of the incident.

The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit recently affirmed a decision of the Administrative Review Board of the Department of Labor, which had determined that a company’s disclosure of the identity of an SEC whistleblower.

Recent OSHA activity indicates the agency will soon unveil its proposed rule to make recordkeeping violations “continuing” for purposes of OSHA’s six-month statute of limitations (SOL).

In the City’s motion for summary judgment, it argued that Stragapede was not disabled under the ADA and that the City did not consider him to be disabled.