State OSHA Plans

OSHA IMIS Records of workplace inspections, including those prompted by accidents where a worker is injured 1984-Present Information from OSHA field inspections, a third party More accurate description of impacts on employees and contractors Keyword indexing allows for easy search and retrieval Not comprehensive, limited to incidents selected by OSHA Inspections without abstracts cannot be keyword searched causal information unavailable Designed to assist compliance enforcement, not to report on incident causes Limited information from State-Plan states Not designed to be a lessons-leamed database... 

The OSHA standards generally cover private sector workers and public sector employees in states that have an OSHA state plan. Public sector employees, or certain school employees, who are not already subject to a state OSHA plan are covered by the USEPA Worker Protection Rule (Federal Register February 25, 1987 40 CFR 763, Subpart G, Abatement Projects Worker Protection, Final Rule). 

Safety and health professionals should never stop attempting to find solutions in creating and maintaining a safe and healthful workplace for their employees. Although OSHA and state plan standards may not be applicable or may be in conflict with the unique situation at hand, working with your regional OSHA office or state plan office often yields workable solutions and avoids the potential of penalties. Creative safety and health professionals should leave no stone unturned in finding solutions to potential risks in the workplace. 

This Instruction establishes enforcement policies and procedures for OSH A s Severe Violator Enforcanent Program (SVEP), which concentrates resources on inspecting employers who have demonstrated indifference to their OSH Act obligations by committing willful, repeated, or failure-to-abate violations. Enforcement actions for severe violator cases include mandatory follow-up inspections, iuCTcased company/ corporate awareness of OSHA enforcement, corporate-wide agreanents, where appropriate, enhanced settlement provisions, and federal court enforcement under Section 11(b) of the OSH Act. In addition, this Instruction provides for nationwide referral procedures, which includes OSHA s State Plan States. This Instruction replaces OSHA s Enhanced Enforcanent Program (EEP). 

J. OSHA Instruction CSP 01-00-002, State Plan Policies and Procedures Manual, March 21, 2001. 

Each State must provide notice of its intent to adopt either policies or procedures identical to those set out in this instruction, or alternative policies and procedures that are at least as effective. State policies and procedures must be adopted within six months of issuance of this instruction. If the State adopts policies and procedures that differ from the Federal program, the State must submit its different policies and procedures as a plan change supplanent with identification of the differences, within 60 days of adoption, and either post its different policies on its State plan website and provide the link to OSHA or provide OSHA with information on how the public may obtain a copy. If the State adopts identical policies and procedures, it must provide the date of adoption to OSHA and information on any State-specific procedures. OSHA will provide summary information on the State responses to this instruction on its website. 

OSHA will accept referrals, which include all relevant facts, from State Plan Stales regarding any inspections conducted pursuant to the State s SVEP. Stale Plan referrals to Federal OSHA are to be sent to the Regional Administrator, who will forward any referrals not in its Region to the appropriate OSHA Regional Administrator. 

Since 1970, OSHA has issued more than 500 rules dealing with all aspects of worker safety and protection in the workplace. Recent amendments to the 1970 Act require employers to notify employees of potential workplace healfli hazards, including chemicals. OSHA regulates exposure to about 400 hazardous and toxic substances in the workplace that can cause harm. Under Seetion 18 of the OSH Act, states are allowed to assume the responsibility for developing and enforeing their own safety and health programs. To date, 25 states have OSHA-approved state plans. ... 

For safety professionals who may be conduction genetic-related monitoring or testing as required by OSHA, state plan, MSHA, or the Atomic Energy Commission to identify the biological effects of toxic substances in the workplace, this information can only be utilized if ... 

According to a December 2010 news release issued by OSHA, the National Association of Home Builders reconunended rescinding the 1995 directive, as did OSHA s labor-management Advisory Committee for Construction Safety and Health, the AFL-CIO and the Occupational Safety and Health State Plan Association, which represents the 27 states and territories that run their own occupational safety and health programs. 

Some states have different requirements than the federal Standard, however, states may not have requirements which are less effective than federal OSHA. If your employer is in an OSHA-approved State Plan State, then your workplace must comply with the State s requirements, which might be different than OSHA s. 

Every workplace must display the OSHA poster (Pub 3165) or the state plan equivalent. The poster explains worker rights to a safe workplace and how to file a complaint. Place the poster where... 

States and jurisdictions can operate their own occupational safety and health plans with OSHA approval. State plans must establish standards that meet federal requirements. Approved state plans must extend their coverage to state and local government workers. Alliances enable organizations committed to workplace safety and health to collaborate with OSHA to prevent injuries and illnesses in the workplace. OSHA and its allies work together to reach out to, educate, and lead the nation s employers and their employees in improving and advancing workplace safety and health. 

Federal OSHA and State-plan State Inspections ... 

OSHA state-plan-states Certain states have more stringent regulations than Federal OSHA. If you operate in a state-plan-state, check with your local OSHA office to determine if there are regulations that go above and beyond Federal OSHA. 

OSHA state-plan-states Remember that certain states have more stringent regulations that go above and beyond the OSHA standards. 

If an on-the-job accident occurs, resulting in the death of an employee or the hospitalization of three or more employees, all employers are required to report the accident in detail to the nearest OSHA office within eight hours (29 CFR 1904.8). The employer must file a report by telephone or in person to the OSHA area office or state plan office. A motor vehicle accident occurring on a public highway, not in a construction zone, does not need to be reported. 

Some states elect to enforce occupational safety and health themselves. They must develop a program that OSHA will review and approve. Approximately twenty-three states have such programs (see Appendix E for a list and addresses for state plans). If a state has a state plan (program) that is approved, the following conditions must exist ... 

Appendix E OSHA Regional Offices and State Plan Offices... 

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