What Are EMPLOYERS’RIGHTS in OSHA Inspections?

摘要

Employers have a legal right to accompany an OSHA inspector during visits to worksites,but the people they choose to do so need to watch what they say in the inspector's presence.”Employers have a clear right to be present for OSHA inspections at their worksites and to accompany OSHA inspectors during the walk-around part of the inspection,”state attorneys David Klass and Travis W.Vance of the law firm of Fisher Phillips.In fact,this right is written into the 1970 Occupational Safety and Health Act and many employers are generally aware of it.”In most cases,there is no issue with compliance: When an OSHA compliance safety and health officer(CSHO)shows up to conduct an inspection and presents their credentials to the employer,the employer knows that OSHA intends to conduct an inspection and has an opportunity to guide the walk-around,”the lawyers explain.Inspectors have some flexibility in terms of when and who they approach to notify the employer at a worksite,especially when multiple employers are present at the same site,something that commonly occurs at many construction sites.Federal courts have found OSHA to have been in substantial compliance with the law in many of these circumstances,Klass and Vance point out.