The Most Important Compliance Best Practices You Need to Know

Documentation - specifically recordkeeping - and proper communication are two cornerstones of the OSHA compliance process that all employers have to follow in order to maintain a safe workplace for their employees. This white paper discusses why proper documentation and communication practices are necessary for employers to avoid unnecessary penalties and the ways in which they can ensure OSHA compliance.

The recent settlement of the whistleblower case against Pilgrim's Pride Corp has brought to the fore the OSHA's regulations that protect employees who highlight unsafe practices by employers. This article is a Q&A explainer that clarifies the main points raised by the case.

Cal/Osha issued 36 citations to American Reclamation Inc, a Los Angeles-based solid waste company, its recycling subsidiary, South Coast Fibers Inc, and their staffing company, Steno Employment Services Inc. The citations led to a penalty of USD 38,895. The citations were a consequence of complaints lodged by workers on the prevailing unsafe working conditions.

Two professors and a doctoral student undertook a 5-year-long study on the effectiveness of inspections conducted by the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA). This article discusses the main highlights of the study outcome.

OSHA does not have specific standards for illnesses and injuries caused to employees by excessive heat. But it has put in place some guidelines that direct employers to prevent the occurrence of heat-related illnesses. This article discusses these guidelines and best practices to be followed.

OSHA recently issued a Call to Action for New Jersey construction companies to ensure the safety of workers at their workplaces. For the same reason, it also monitors the extent to which companies comply with its instructions.

In May 2012, OSHA issued citations to a number of companies for violating safety regulations governing process safety management, documentation and recordkeeping, equipment inspections, lead contamination and grain elevators. This article discusses the most notable citations and violations that were issued to companies recently by the safety agency.

The US Department of Labor’s OSHA or Occupational Safety and Health Administration has issued a warning to Hyatt Hotels Corp., subsequent to its year-long onsite inspection of the company. While Hyatt’s offenses were not so serious as to warrant a citation, it was served a letter by OSHA. This article discusses the contents of the letter and OSHA's concerns.

Employees and workers spend a good part of their time at workplaces. Hence it is important that the environment in which they work is hygienic –- therein arises the relevance of Indoor Air Quality or IAQ. OSHA has specific requirements for indoor air quality and these have to be followed to ensure worker health and safety.

Since workers in the chemical sector handle harmful chemicals they are exposed to health risks. There are certain standards and procedures in place to educate these workers about the safest ways to handle these containers. Currently, for chemical manufacturers and importers in the US, OSHA has put in place a Hazard Communication Standard (HCS).

Hershey owns Eastern Distribution Center III, a vast plant in Palmyra. The chocolate company hired Exel, a logistics contractor that has operations in 511 facilities in the United States and Canada, to run the plant. Exel in turn hired a subcontractor, SHS Staffing Solutions that hired foreign students as temporary workers to pack chocolates. Following a six-month investigation, OSHA Director fined Exel USD 283,000 for job safety violations.

This article details the reasons why the contractor was fined and the best practices that should have been followed to avoid similar violations.

OSHA’s (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) New National Emphasis Program (NEP) empowers OSHA inspectors to cover chemical facilities around the country. It ensures that all the necessary steps are taken to protect workers. It replaces OSHA's 2009 pilot Chemical Facility National Emphasis Program which covered several OSHA regions around the country.

This article details the best practices chemical facilities can follow in order to comply with the requirements of NEP.

OSHA inspections reveal that the Scaffolding and Fall Protection Standards in Construction topped the list of the top ten most frequently standards cited by it during FY 2011. This article details the most common OSHA violations observed in 2011 and the best practices that companies can follow in order to avert these compliance pitfalls.

OSHA’s acceptance or recognition of the worksite of a small business / small employer into SHARP (Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Program) confers a certain status on the small business / small employer concerned. Specifically, the business gains an exemption from OSHA programmed inspections for up to 2 years, and subsequent renewal for up to 3 years.

This article describes the best practices that small businesses can follow in order to get into OSHA's SHARP.

OSHA's Voluntary Protection Programs or VPP is aimed at promoting worksite-based safety and health. Organizations approved by OSHA to join the VPP is official recognition by the safety agency of an employer's outstanding efforts to ensure a safe workplace and protect its employees.

This article describes the best practices that organizations can follow in order to successfully apply to be part of OSHA's VPP.

Under OSHA regulations, employers have to recognize and catalog workplace hazards so that any workplace accidents and dangers to employee health and safety can be prevented.

This article describes the best practices to be followed in recognizing and cataloguing workplace hazards in compliance with OSHA's regulatory requirements.

Environment, Health and Safety (EH&S) management is emerging as a key challenge for large organizations. Companies have to ensure that appropriate processes and programs for work safety compliance are in place and address environment related issues in their operating environment. Without an environment or a work safety program they run the risk of occupational safety and environmental hazards. Furthermore, companies involved in high technology, construction, mining, energy, oil and gas, and chemicals pose a serious threat to environment through Green House Gas (GHG) emission and waste discharges that requires a greater focus on EH&S.