In 2011, the Center for Public Integrity did an investigation involving companies in the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) ‘Model Workplace’ program. These companies were exempt from regular OSHA inspections for complying with standards in the past. The investigation, however, revealed that a significant number of deaths had occurred at these sites with few consequences for the workplaces in question.
OSHA now has a policy in place that automatically removes companies from the Model Workplace program after work-related deaths or serious violations of workplace standards. Along with this new policy came review of OSHA’s Voluntary Protection Programs (VPP), which lead to an overhaul of how OSHA responds to serious accidents at sites involved in these programs.
With these new policies in place, OSHA has really stepped its game up when it comes to workplace accidents and injuries. But the fight isn’t over, and there’s still a long way to go to ensure your safety. We here at Pellerin Law Firm are happy to answer any of your questions regarding workplace accidents and injuries, and we will make sure that you get the help that you need when it comes to safety violations.
Source: publicintegrity.org “IMPACT: OSHA strengthens rules for ‘model workplace’ program.” July 12, 2013.