A SafetyXChange Exclusive Interview with Former OSHA Secretary, John Henshaw, CIH

Situation

14,000 companies just got a letter from OSHA telling them that their injury and illness rates are too high. If the letter hasn't shown up in your mailbox, it may be on the way. What does the letter mean and what should you do if you get one? Well, it's not a notice of inspection, so you don't have to panic. But if you don't handle it properly, it will lead to one.

To find out what these letters are all about and how companies should handle them SafetyXChange sat down with former OSHA head, John Henshaw.

The SST Program

SafetyXChange: Secretary Henshaw, will you please explain why OSHA is sending out these letters?

Henshaw: It's all part of the Site Specific Targeting program (SST). The best way to explain the program is within the overall context of OSHA enforcement. You see, OSHA has about 1,200 inspectors to help ensure the health and safety of workers in millions of workplaces across the nation. Since inspectors can't visit every facility, OSHA must decide which facilities present the highest safety risks.

SafetyXChange: Historically, OSHA would conduct random inspections, right?

Henshaw: Right. But under the SST program, OSHA identifies facilities with higher than average rates of injuries and illnesses. OSHA surveys about 80,000 workplaces and selects about 14,000 "high hazard facilities" based on their Days Away, Restricted, or Transferred (DART) rate and Days Away From Work Injury and Illness (DAFWII) rates.

SafetyXChange: What happens if a company is a "high hazard" facility?

Henshaw: It means the company is being watched. OSHA sends such facilities a letter notifying them that their DART and/or DAFWII rate is too high. The letter recommends ways to lower these rates, primarily by using an OSHA consultation service to help correct the hazards.

What to Do If You Get a Letter

SafetyXChange: What should a company do if it gets one of these letters?

Henshaw: Just because a company gets an SST letter doesn't necessarily mean it's going to get inspected. But if you get a letter, count on being placed on the SST program list. When OSHA does programmed  - or planned inspections - it generally looks at this list for facilities to target.

SafetyXChange: Is there anything the company can do to prevent an inspection?

Henshaw: Yes. Companies that get an SST letter must improve their safety and health performance and assure they're in compliance with all OSHA standards. The company can call OSHA consultation in their state. The service can help the company identify potential hazards and corrective actions necessary to ensure compliance and improve occupational safety and health management systems.

SafetyXChange: So if a company gets in touch with a consultation service, it won't be inspected?

Henshaw: If a site is working in good faith with OSHA consultation services, OSHA generally won't conduct the programmed inspection.

SafetyXChange: How much do these services cost?

Henshaw: The service is free to small businesses that have no more than 250 employees at one site and 500 total employees.

SafetyXChange: Do the consultant services report back to OSHA enforcement officials if they find problems?

Henshaw: One of the nice things about a consultation service is that it's completely separate from OSHA enforcement, so you won't receive any OSHA citations or penalties, no matter how many violations the consultation service finds. And it's also confidential. So consultants won't report the information they uncover to OSHA inspectors.

SafetyXChange: This sounds very appealing.

Henshaw: Yes. But there's one exception. If the consultation service identifies a serious hazard or imminent danger to workers that's not corrected in a timely manner, it might be referred to an OSHA enforcement office for appropriate follow-up. Luckily, this has rarely occurred in the past.

SafetyXChange: How can a company get in touch with a consultation service?

Henshaw: Each state has its own consultation service. To find one in your state, go the OSHA website. [Editor's Note: The URL is: www.osha.gov/dcsp/smallbusiness/consult_directory.html .]

Hiring an Outside Consultant

SafetyXChange: What if you hire your own consultant rather than use free consultation services?

Henshaw: Anything that helps bring your illness and injury rates down is to be encouraged. Working with an outside consultant could help you correct compliance issues and reduce workplace safety and health risks but it might not help you prevent an OSHA inspection the way using OSHA consultation services would.

SafetyXChange: Does it count for anything with OSHA if the company is working actively with an outside consultant?

Henshaw: Yes. OSHA inspectors will generally take that it into account and consider it an indication that you're making a good faith effort to achieve compliance and reduce risk.

A Warning

SafetyXChange: Do you have any parting words?

Henshaw: Yes. Take this seriously. The worst thing a company can do is ignore a high hazard facility letter. If you get a letter, you've been told by OSHA that your rates are well above the norm and you need to fix the problem.

Editor's Note: Secretary Henshaw will write a series of articles on the new OSHA and how to position your organization to take advantage of it. These articles will appear exclusively in the pages of Compliance Weekly. So stay tuned to SafetyXChange!

WHO WON?

Is Doing One's Business Doing Business under Workers' Comp?

What Happened?

An Arkansas worker gets hit by a truck coming back from the restroom. The state Workers' Comp Board denies his claim. The worker's injury wasn't work-related, the Board says, because going to the bathroom isn't part of an employee's job function. The worker appeals to the state Supreme Court.

Who Won?

The worker. The Arkansas Supreme Court rules that a bathroom break "was a necessary function and directly or indirectly advanced the interests of his employer."

Editor's Note: Thanks to SafetyXChange Board member Richard Hawk for submitting this gem.

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