The Provisions of the

Occupational Safety & Health Act of 1970

Presented to
Mr. Perry Barton

MGMT 2215 Team Project

By
Pamela Bosch

February 23, 2015

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While taking the time to research a piece of legislation and its administration, I
realized that every job that I have had from the age of fifteen has had something with big
letters at the top saying, OSHA. But I am ashamed to admit that I retained very little
about what the department did besides having a hot line an employee could call to report
their employers for potentially hazardous or dangerous situations. Then it dawned on me
that, over the past three to four decades, the United States hazardous working
environment has improved substantially, or that is the feeling that occurred at that
moment. It was no surprise to read about the multiple jobs that workers held which put
them in contact with threatening, hazardous materials or that there wasnt much
precautionary steps being taken by business owners or upper management because that
would of taken away from profits. Growing up there were plenty of movies about small
coalmining towns or others with scenes in manufacturing warehouses, which cant be
taken as being historical truths but they were based on some historical events and the
culture of that time. So getting back to remembering working for a company who had the
OSHA posters hanging usually near the employee break area, it became very apparent in
my eyes that working conditions have tremendously improved. Have all workplace
hazards been eliminated? The answer is of course not, that may never happen. OSHA
has received a lot of criticism ever since it was passed from opposing sides, one side feels
they are overstepping their bounds and making very difficult on business owners while
the opposing side wants more regulations and enforcement out of the administration in
order to actually deal with the current issues at hand. It is important that the reasoning
behind passing the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 is explained before
moving forward.
A societal change was in the uprising in the late nineteen-sixties and early
seventies. More and more research was being conducted on topics involving the working
environment and how people are medically impacted as well as other issues relating to
workers hazardous, environmental surroundings. People were becoming more vocal
about wanting more government involvement in order to ensure worker safety but it was
not creating the impact that would motivate government. That was up until the report
about twelve thousand workers who had been diagnosed with a disease called Brown
Lung. Those twelve thousand workers were all from the textile industry. The doctors
blamed the continuous exposure and inhalation of cotton dust was the major reason the
workers developed the disease. Due to the inability to successfully treat the disease in
any stage but very early, those workers were either forced into early retirement because of
inability to perform tasks or passed away from the disease (Rosenthal). The Occupational
Safety and Health Act was brought to President Nixon under the Williams-Steiger
Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970. It took three years and two presidents for
the health and safety bill to pass through Congress. President Johnson had tried prior to
Nixon but wasnt able to decide who would be awarded the workforce supervision. The
Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, also known as the OSH Act, was passed and
was followed by a large celebration held in the Department of Labors office. OSH Act
allowed the federal government to take course in regulating the level of contact of
hazardous things within the work place. The preventative measures to increase safety
measures taken while working with hazardous material or situations was also in need of
being attending to. Before OSH Act was passed work-related accidents and fatalities
occurred on a regular basis, which is difficult for someone that has grown up in the world
with regulations and enforcement to try and grasp. One of the larger motivators for some
course of action to be taken was the discovery of the one hundred uranium miners who
had passed away from cancer which was said to be from working in the mines and taking

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in the dangerously high levels of radiation (Labor). Since there was no clear, distinct
organization that could be blamed or put at fault only a few federal programs were created
in order to attempt to aid those affected. This paper will provide a good explanation of
what the Occupational Safety and Health Administration is responsible for and seeks to
do, as well as other provisions of the act itself.
What was President Nixons overall objective for the Occupational Safety and
Health Act? As it was briefly mentioned during the introduction, the bill took three years to
get it approved and made into official legislation. Because it took over three years for
Congress to approve, this bill was originally made during President Johnsons term in
office. President Richard Nixon was the one who was finally able to get it passed in
1970.He wanted to give the Federal government the ability to implement solid regulations
that would keep American workers healthy and make strides to decrease the number of
work related incidences, both fatal and injury related. The administration began to pass new
laws requiring that employers ensure the establishment had a safe and healthy working
environment for its workers. There have been several trials and tribulations that have
impacted the support for both the Department of Labor as well as the Occupational Safety
and Health Administration. As most new programs are when in the beginning stages of
development, the OSHA had some unfavorable criticisms due to the resistance from
employers to make new accommodations. It didnt help the administration that Watergate
occurred during those first few years and the department head had some of his less than
legal conversations leaked to the public. Business owners fought the new regulations
sighting that the financial burden of making all the new adjustments did or would put their
company out of business. All organizations and administrations will have difficult times
where it may be difficult to see the light at the end of the road. However, most of the time
the trust and support can be regained with proving actions are honest and methods are legal.
Who is required to obey the rules and regulations of the Occupational Safety and
Health Act? The list of parties who do not qualify would be a much shorter list to provide.
Self-employed, farm employees who are within the immediate family of the farmer,
industries who have their own federal agency to handle their work-related activities. Also
the public sector employees are not covered by OSHA. Public sector is referring to the
government and state employees. Majority of businesses in the United States fall under the
private sector of business. Therefore, the administration of the Occupational Safety and
Health Act are responsible for ensuring workers are allowed to execute their rights to work
in a safe environment and when there is a problem, have the proper channel to report to.
The administration is also in charge of providing employers with requirements as well as
the consequences for noncompliance. States are encouraged to develop their own plan of
health and safety plans. But not every state has one in place, including Georgia. Those
states that do have an approved plan receive up to fifty percent of their funding from the
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). State safety and health plans are
usually developed in order to provide protection for some of the public sector workers.
Above private sector workers were stated to fall under the protection and
administration of the Occupational Safety and Health Act. One statement seemed to be
continuously emphasized throughout researching this topic. That statement was employees
have the right to work without threat of hazardous work that could result in inflicting harm
upon themselves. What does that mean? What is included in such a broad description?
The interpretation that I developed was that employees cannot be asked, pushed, or forced
to do work-related activities that have evident and probable likelihood of harming him or
herself. So obviously, it would be illegal for an employer to force his employee to cut glass

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without personal protective equipment. A worker who works with glass and cutting
different sizes and shapes must have proper protection in order to prevent injuries as well as
potential fatality. OSHA also states that employees have the right to request that their
employer be inspected by an official OSHA inspector without being ousted, meaning an
employee can file a complaint and have their identity remain confidential. That provides
workers with a sense of confidence that employers will not be able to retaliate against them
for inspections. Employers have to provide employees with training and related
information about hazardous products or materials as well as how to properly handle or
discard them. It seemed like a common sense statement but there was notation of having
employee training in a language that could be understood by the employees. All employees
are allowed to look up or request a copy of their companys work-related illnesses and
injuries report, reports covering the monitoring, testing, and measures used to uncover
hazards, and they can have the employer provide their workplace medical records if so
desired (OSHA).
Employers have certain obligations that they must fulfill or else the administration
could issue a citation and/or fine. In a perfect world and without the sad reality that not all
people are moral, ethically driven individuals, rules such as, an employer will not punish or
seek retaliation against an employee for filing a complaint or requesting an inspection,
would not have to be put into place. But since, todays world is full of individuals who are
only looking out for themselves The Occupational Safety and Health Administration have to
develop, amend, and make additional rules for employers. Company owners have a
responsibility to provide reasonable attempts to fulfill employee accommodations needed.
An example of what might be considered a reasonable employee request is adding a ramp
for someone with impaired walking abilities. It is illegal for an employer to not make an
attempt to accommodate, unless the employer is able to provide substantial evidence
showing the financial burden would result in a detrimental burden that the business
likelihood of being able to open would be unlikely. Employers are required to keep records
documenting any employee work-related incident. Other reporting that needs to be updated
and recorded include any required OSHA testing and the results. Training programs are
essential to making sure all possible measures were taken to prevent an incident from
occurring. By creating and providing employee training, the employer is able to avoid
responsibility for incidents that were covered in the training course material. A very
important requirement that was repeatedly stated was employers have to provide personal
protection equipment for employee use. Employers are not allowed to charge the employee
for use or deduct the cost from wages, it should be viewed as operational expenses. Some
employers may have to offer their employees medical and vision exams and provide results
to the individual. Public documentation employers must have accessible to employees
include work-related injuries/illness data, Occupational Safety and Health Administration
citations received and the dates in relation to the occurrence.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration requires documentation to be
recorded and submitted on a scheduled basis and stored for a period of time before destroying
it. The reporting requirements and statues were modified as of January 1, 2015. Employers
are obligated to keep records of all fatalities injuries, and illnesses that are work-related. The
Occupational Safety and Health Administration provides the approved forms for employers to
use, which can be found on both the Department of Labor webpage or the Occupational
Safety and Health webpage under the recordkeeping tab. Three forms should be submitted:

Form 300:

Log for Injuries and Illnesses

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Form 300A:
Form 301:

Summary of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses

Injury and Illness Incident Report

The Occupational Safety and Health Act defines a work-related incident as an event that
occurred in the work place or aided in the development of a workers injury, illness, or
fatality (OSHA). OSHAs National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health takes the
collected data and makes reports to determine where attention should be focused in response
to high levels of safety hazards. When situations occur in the workplace, OSHA must be
notified. Depending on severity, the employer must file the report with OSHA;

Report within eight hours

o all work-related fatalities
Report within twenty four hours
o work-related hospitalizations
o work-related amputations
o work-related loss of an eye

The list above is the broad requirements of what must be reported. I will explain in more
detail. Fatalities is pretty self-explanatory. Hospitalizations include things like being
admitted into the hospital for overnight, diagnosis by doctor of a work-related injury or
illness, and seeking additional medical attention after first aid is not enough. An amputation
includes removal of a body limb, it needs to be noted whether the amputation happened on
work premises or was ordered by physician. Loss of an eye does not include vision loss but
pertains to the actual removal of a workers eyeball. Injuries and/or illnesses that prevent
workers from showing up to work, require transfer to another department or job, or limited
job duties needed to be recorded and also filed. Some examples of reportable injuries include
breaking a bone, sprains, and loosing conscientiousness. Any disease a worker contracts,
acute or chronic, must be reported if work-related. These reports show how industry
performance corresponds with their environment and how accident prone it is. By analyzing
what job duties or fields cause what type of injury or sickness, the administration can address
potential solutions to decrease the number of worker incidences.
Employees have the right to report their employer if they are forced to work in an
unsafe environment. They have the right to file a report without the fear of employer
retaliation and the employees identity should remain confidential in order to prevent the
employer from doing so. The main objective of the Occupational Safety and Health
Administration is to provide employees with a working environment that is safe and free of
hazardous materials and areas. Because of the number of private sector businesses being
around eight hundred thousand as of 2002 and OSHA having around two thousand inspectors
(Silverstein) employees are being relied upon as a huge contributor to fulfill this goal.
Employees are asked to file a report within thirty days of the incident to the Occupational
Safety and Health Administration. Calling a hotline number, sending an email, writing a
letter, or going into one of the regional offices to speak with someone are all options for a
worker to use for making a complaint. Once a claim has been made, an inspector will
conduct an investigation in order to determine whether the claim has validity as well as the

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severity of the situation. If the inspector finds and cites the employer, the employer should
make the necessary adjustments without any type of employee punishment. If the employer
decides to retaliate against an employee who has reported an injury, safety concern, or other
areas protected by the administration, they will be punished. Retaliation is not taken lightly
by the government and employers face consequences for doing so. Once an employee feels
they have been unjustly retaliated against by management and/or employer, they need to
report it immediately. In states that have a compliant health and safety law, workers can file
with both the state and federal agencies (OSHA). The victim will be interviewed about the
events that occurred and their explanation as to why they feel the employers actions were
retaliatory. If the investigation provides enough data for the agency to rule retaliation did
occur, the next step is to bring the case to the Labor Department and its lawyers to assess.
The lawyers will take the time to go over the case in order to determine how litigation worthy
it is (Rosenthal). If taken to court a trial will be conducted with the person who filed the
claim being the plaintiff and the employer, the defendant. Any employer who is convicted of
retaliation will be ordered to compensate the former employee, which translates into financial
reimbursement. That seems pretty easy, right? Well it wasnt mentioned how long these
proceedings can take. One might assume that because of the short time frame one has to
make a claim, within thirty days that the following steps would move as swiftly. That is the
furthest thing from the truth. Plaintiffs can have to wait years for a ruling from the district
courts. Meanwhile what is that person supposed to do? They have to earn money in order to
survive and eat, possibly provide for a family. Taking into account all the steps that have to
be taken with high levels of detail and sensitivity, some employees would rather keep their
job and continue to deal with rather than take a chance of losing their means of employment.
What was developed as such an innovative concept toward employees holding
employers accountable has unfortunately been unable to meet the level of expectations it
should be. The OSHAs whistleblowing provision wants employees to take an active role in
the process of making the workplace a safer place for everyone. That is also why there are
non-retaliation laws for employers to follow. If an employee witnesses or feels that
employers are putting others in a potentially dangerous or hazardous situation, OSHA wants
that employee to report it and feel safe that their anonymity will be protected and that the
employer will not be allowed to retaliate in any manner. That is how it is supposed to work
and if it did then this provision would be a homerun. Sadly, because of certain components
of the Occupational Safety and Health Acts whistleblower provision, many reports go
unfiled or disqualify themselves from further investigation. The whistleblower provision
requires that all reports must be filed within thirty days of the incident. A lot of times an
employee will attempt to rectify the issue themselves, and give management the benefit of the
doubt, thinking they will make the proper adjustments that need to be made. By following
the chain of command time is lost and it becomes frustrating for employees because they took
the correct course of action according to almost all employee training courses. Thirty days
simply is not a long enough time frame to provide employee whistleblowers with. Another
component of the Whistleblower Act is any case will have to be judged within the federal
district court. The federal district court systems are already densely filled with cases that take
time to hear and make a ruling. Federal courts also have to decide on which case takes

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priority over another based on significance, crime committed, and other factors, which may
cause a whistleblowers case to be push further and further into the future.
Enforcing the rules and regulations is the primary job of the OSHA inspections.
Inspectors go out into the businesses and conduct inspections to see if there are any
regulations being broken. Inspections are conducted on an unscheduled basis, meaning that
employers are not previously informed that they will be inspected. Once the inspection is
over, the inspector will meet with the employer and employee representative to go over what
was found, what citations will be given, the time frame in which corrections need to be made,
and who to contact about citation payments. Employers have fifteen days to file a dispute
against citations. If the employer does dispute citations, they cant be fined for abatement.
Inspectors can make citations based on several types of violations. Each violation comes
with a fine but the fine is determined based on the seriousness and repetition of the violation.
There are nine types of violations and they are listed in order of severity.
1. Other-than-serious violation and it has a maximum fine of $1,000.
2. Serious violations can cost an employer anywhere from $1,500 - $7,000.
3. Willful violations are when the employer knowingly does wrong and there are
variations of this violation. If it is broadly defined as willful the fine range is $5,000 $70,000.
a. Willful Violations leading to fatalities by one person will have a fine of
$250,000 and six months in jail. A corporation will have to pay $500,000 with
six months jail.
4. Repeat Violations can be fined up to $70,000.
5. Failure-to-Abate Violations can cost an employer up to $7,000 per violation for every
day not corrected.
6. Falsifying Records has a fine of up to $10,000 and six months jail.
7. Failure to Meet Posting Requirements can cost $7,000.
8. Failure to Report Fatality has a minimum fine of $5,000.
9. If advanced notice was given for inspection the fine is either $1,000 or six months
jail.
Overall The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 has improved the working standards
and conditions throughout the industries of America. There is still a long way to go and the
work place may never be free of all hazards but it is the duty of the Occupational Safety and
Health Administration to continue the good work on trying to meet their goal of eliminating
all hazards.

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I.

Works Cited

Labor, Department of. U.S. Department of Labor -- History -- The Job Safety Law of
1970: Its Passage Was Perilous:. 8 April 2014.
http://www.dol.gov/dol/aboutdol/history/osha.htm. 7 February 2015.
OSHA. "Occupational Safety and Health Administration." 3 April 2013. United States
Department of Labor. 1 February 2015.
Rosenthal, Ann. "A Government Perspective." Labor & Employment Law 39.4 (2011):
4-6. Web. 22 February 2015.
Silverstein, Michael. "Getting Home Safe and Sound:Occupational Safety and Health
Administration at 38." American Journal of Public Health 98.3 (2008): 416423. Web. 20 February 2015.