Neil H. Wasser

OSHA INSPECTION POLICY

  1. Purpose:

To establish uniform procedures to coordinate management involvement at every location in the event of an OSHA inspection.

  1. Presentation of Credentials and Opening Conference
  1. When an individual arrives at a company facility and presents as an OSHACompliance Safety and Health Officer, the receptionist should direct or escort theCompliance Officer to an appropriate waiting area. The Compliance Officershould be treated courteously at all times. First impressions by the ComplianceOfficer often dictate the course of the inspection and the characterization of the citations, if any result.
  1. The receptionist should immediately contact the Plant Manager and HumanResources & Safety Manager and notify them of the presence of the ComplianceOfficer at the facility
  1. The Plant Manager or Human Resources/Safety Manager should then advisethe Vice-President of Manufacturing and the Vice-President of Human Resources, and the Safety Director that there is an OSHA Compliance Officer at the facility. Under no circumstances should the Compliance Officer be kept waiting more than a brief period of time while the persons are being notified.
  1. The Compliance Officer should then be invited to the Plant Manager’s office, or another suitable meeting room, to meet with the Plant Manager, Human Resource & Safety Manager and other appropriate company representatives. If the Compliance Officer does not do so on his own, the Plant Manager that or Human Resource & Safety should request that the Compliance Officer present his or her credentials. If there is a question about the Compliance Officer’s credentials, the Plant Manager may wish to contact the OSHA Area Office for verification.
  1. Opening Conference
  1. After the presentation of credentials to the Plant Manager, but before aninspection is actually conducted, the Compliance Officer will conduct aninformal opening conference. During the opening conference, the ComplianceOfficer should explain whether the inspection is being conducted pursuant to ageneral administrative enforcement plan or in response to a specific complaintby an associate. The Compliance Officer will typically conduct the inspectionwithout an associate representative.
  2. Generally, the Compliance Officer will explain the purpose of the visit andwill outline the scope of the inspection of the facility, the records to bereviewed, and private associate interviews.
  1. The Compliance Officer also will indicate during the opening conferencewhether the inspection will be primarily safety oriented or health oriented. If itis primarily a health inspection, the Compliance Officer probably will be anindustrial hygienist, who will likely seek to review the facility’s exposuremonitoring records and will typically conduct some form of sampling ofworkplace environmental conditions. To the extent that it is practical andfeasible to do so, it is beneficial in such a situation for the facility to takesamples alongside the OSHA industrial hygienist. This ensures that theemployer is not unjustly cited because or erroneous laboratory analysis orresults that are not representatives of actual conditions.
  1. If the proposed inspection is in response to a specific complaint, theCompany should seek to limit the scope of the inspection to the cited conditionidentified in the complaint. Although the identity of the complainant isconfidential, the Compliance Officer will provide an expurgated copy of thecomplaint, upon request.
  1. Even if the inspection starts out being limited to the scope of the associatecomplaint, it can be broadened if the Compliance Officer sees or hears aboutany other hazardous conditions during the course of the inspection.
  1. At the beginning of the opening conference, the Plant Manager shouldidentify the company representatives present at the opening conference andoffer a brief explanation of why each individual has been asked to attend. Generally, the Compliance Officer will inquire about the Company’s safetyprogram. It is essential that those in attendance at the conference have aworking knowledge of the facility’s safety and health procedures. Specifically,all attendees should have an appreciation of the written programs in effect, howsafety and health training programs are implemented, and an understanding ofhow accidents at the facility are investigated.
  1. If the company has trade secrets that might be revealed during theinspection, these areas should be identified at the opening conference. Anyinformation obtained by the Compliance Officer in these designated areas willbe labeled “confidential-trade secret” and cannot be disclosed outside theproceedings to which the information is relevant.
  1. Warrant Requirement

Although the Supreme Court has held that OSHA must obtain a warrant togain entry to the premises of a company to conduct a general inspection whenthe employer does not consent to the inspection, it is not difficult to obtainsuch a warrant. From a practical standpoint, consent should be given withouta warrant.

There are some circumstances that would justify requiring OSHAto get a warrant. The decision depends on the specific situation presented atthe time the Compliance Officer appears at the facility to conduct aninspection. If you think the particular circumstances presented may justifyrequiring OSHA to get a warrant or if you have any questions, contact theVice President of Manufacturing and/or the Vice President of HumanResources. As a general rule, consideration should be given to requiring awarrant when the Compliance Officer indicates during the opening conferencethat, although the inspection is complaint-based, he/she intends to expand thescope of the inspection beyond the areas identified in the complaint.

If the Compliance Officer presents an inspection warrant upon his/her arrivalat the facility, photocopy the warrant and any supporting documentation andcontact the Vice President of Human Resources for guidance. The warrantshould includethe exact facility and entity to be inspected as well as the scopeof the inspection.

  1. Walk around Inspection
  1. Both the Occupational Safety and Health Act and OSHA’sregulations provide that a representative of the employer shall be giventhe opportunity to accompany the Compliance Officer during theinspection. The Plant Manager and HR/Safety manager should accompany theCompliance Officer during the inspection. The company representatives should beprofessional and cordial to the Compliance Officer throughout theinspection.
  1. The Company’s walk around representatives should take notesduring the inspection, documenting everything about which theCompliance Officer is concerned, including pertinent statements madeduring the inspection. The walk around representatives should take thesame photographs or measurements that the Compliance Officer takesduring the inspection as well as identifying what was measured, themethod of measurement, how many samples or measurements weretaken, and the duration of the samples and measurements.
  1. During the course of the inspection, the Compliance Officer mayconduct private interviews with as many associates as is deemednecessary. The company representative should make available a placefor the Compliance Officer to conduct the interviews. If managementassociates are to be interviewed, the company has a right to have acompany representative present during such interviews.
  1. The Compliance Officer also may inspect records required to bemaintained under the Occupational Safety and Health Act. TheCompliance Officer will typically request that the Company produceits OSHA 300 Log and OSHA Form 301, its written HazardCommunication Program, the written Lockout/Tag out Program,exposure-monitoring data, and documentation of the training requiredby various OSHA standards. All the records should be made availableto the Compliance Officer upon request. The facility should keep a listof all records shown to OSHA during the inspection, specifying whichrecords were copied.
  1. During the walk around inspection, company representatives andthe Compliance Officer will use the following personal protectivesafety equipment as necessary—respirator, safety glasses or goggles,hearing protection, etc.
  1. In the event that violations such as blocked aisles, unsafe flow surfaces, hazardous projections, or other such deficiencies are pointedout by the Compliance Officer; the company representatives shouldtake immediate action to correct the violations if at all possible.
  1. Closing Conference
  1. After the inspection is concluded, the Compliance Officer will hold aclosing conference during which any safety or health violations that havebeen observed will be reviewed. Generally, the Compliance Officer willidentify the standards that have been violated. The Compliance Officertypically will not reveal, however, which of these items, if any, will resultin the issuance of citations or penalties. Statements made at theconference do not bar the Compliance Officer from subsequently issuing acitation for a violation that the Officer did not specifically raise at theclosing conference. Statements made by company representatives duringthe closing may affect the decision whether to issue a citation, thecharacterization of the citation, as well as theextent of the proposedpenalty. It is, therefore, important to maintain a professional andcourteous demeanor throughout the closing conference, even if there is astrong disagreement with the Compliance Officer’s findings andconclusions.
  1. It is always helpful to abate non-controversial violationsimmediately (during the inspection, if possible) as a demonstration ofgood faith. Caution should be used in estimating the time necessary tocorrect more complex violations because the company’s estimate is likelyto become the abatement date required in the citation.
  1. The company representatives in attendance should not admit anyviolations, and should not offer any suggestions about how long it wouldtake to complete abatement. If absolutely forced to give an estimate, itshould be remembered that OSHA might later require the company toadhere to that time estimate.
  1. The Plant Manager should promptly advise the Vice President ofManufacturing, the Vice President of Human Resources about the mattersdiscussed during the closing conference.
  1. Post-Inspection Procedures

Immediately after the Compliance Officer leaves the plant site, the PlantManager should meet with all appropriate management representativesconcerned with the inspection to discuss both the OSHA inspection and theCompliance Officer’s observations and findings. The Plant Manager isresponsible for formulating a plan to respond to the Compliance Officer’sobservations and findings.

  1. The Decision Whether To Contest The Citation

Upon receipt of a citation, the company has fifteen (15) working days withinwhich to notify OSHA in writing that it wishes to contest the citation and/orproposed notification on penalty.

Whether or not the company agrees with the citation, OSHA encourages employers to ask for an informal conference, usually with the OSHA Area Director, during this fifteen (15) working day period. This is almost always agood idea. It provides an opportunity for further discussion with the ComplianceOfficer and his or her supervisor, and the amount of penalty is often reduced as a result of these informal conferences. It is important to remember that this informal conference does not extend the fifteen (15) working day requirement for the filing of a written notice of contest.

If the outcome of the informal conference is not satisfactory, the companymay still want to contest the citation, with legal assistance. The company can contest all of any part of the alleged violations, the proposed assessment of penalties, the proposed abatement periods, or the entire citation. If a notice of contest is filed contesting an alleged violation, then as long as the allegedly violation is under contest, there is no duty to correct the condition.

If the citation and/or penalty is not contested within fifteen (15) working days from receipt, the citation and assessment become a final order of the OccupationalSafety and Health Review Commission that cannot later be reviewed by anycourt or agency.

Although sometimes there is no question that a hazardous condition exists andthat it can be corrected without the expenditure of substantial sums of money,the company should be aware that once a citation becomes a final order, itmight be used as the basis for a repeat or willful violation. Thus, indetermining the cost of whether or not to contest a citation, the implications ofbeing cited for a repeat violation sometime in the future also should beconsidered.

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Neil H. Wasser

OSHA INSPECTION CHECKLIST

Plant Location: ______

Date of Inspection: ______

Type of Inspection: General Inspection ______

Complaint Inspection ______

Compliance Officer’s:

Name: ______

Address: ______

Telephone Number: ______

  1. A designated member of management should cordially greet the ComplianceOfficer while the Vice President of Manufacturing and the Vice President of HumanResources are contacted and informed of the Compliance Officer’s presence.
  1. Ask to see the Compliance Officer’s credentials if they are not presented.
  1. Ask whether the inspection is a general inspection or a complaint inspection. Ifthe inspection was prompted by a complaint, secure a copy of the complaint.
  1. At the opening conference with the Compliance Officer.
  1. Take notes on the reason for the inspection.
  2. Take notes on the scope of the inspection including:
  1. If associate interviews will be held, and departments orwork areas.
  2. Which records will be reviewed.
  3. How long the inspection will last.
  4. The actual areas to be inspected.
  5. Notify the Compliance Officer if any trade secrets exist which maybe revealed during the investigation.
  1. If the Compliance Officer is present in response to an associate complaint, limitthe scope of the inspection to the cited condition.
  1. The designated management representative(s) should accompany the ComplianceOfficer during the inspection.
  1. During the inspection, the designated management representative should:
  1. Take written notes on all the Compliance Officer’s actions and statements.
  2. Measure all items measured by the Compliance Officer.
  3. Take photographs of all items photographed by the Compliance Officer. (Ifit is not possible to take photographs, identify the object photographed and thelocation from which the photograph was taken and request copies of the photographsfrom the Compliance Officer.)
  4. If samples are taken, take the same samples and note the samples.
  5. If interviews are conducted in the presence of the managementrepresentative, then all observations should be recorded.
  6. If interviews are conducted outside the presence of the managementrepresentative, then the name of the interviewed associate, location of the interview,and time of the interview should be noted if such information is available.
  7. If records or reports are reviewed or copied by OSHA, a list of theserecords or reports should be made.
  1. At the closing conference, the management representative should note allstatements made by the Compliance Officer including any apparent violations identified by the Compliance Officer, any statements concerning the issuance of characterization ofcitations, penalties, and any proposed abatement dates.
  1. If the management representative is asked for any estimate of any abatementperiod, there should be no admission that a violation or hazard requiring abatementexists. If there is not dispute about the existence of the hazard, the Compliance Officershould be given a liberal estimate of time within which abatement can be accomplished.

SWITCH BOARD PROCEDURES

FOR

OSHA INSPECTION

  1. WHEN AN INDIVIDUAL ARRIVES AT A COMPANY FACILITY AND PRESENTS AS AN OSHA COMPLIANCE SAFETY AND HEALTH OFFICER, THE RECEPTIONIST SHOULD DIRECT OR ESCORT THE COMPLIANCE OFFICER TO AN APPROPRIATE WAITING AREA.
  1. THE COMPLIANCE OFFICER SHOULD BE TREATED COURTEOUSLY AT ALL TIMES.
  1. THE RECEPTIONIST SHOULD IMMEDIATELY CONTACT THE PLANT MANAGER AND HUMAN RESOURCES & SAFETY MANAGER AND NOTIFY THEM OF THE PRESENCE OF THE COMPLIANCE OFFICER AT THE FACILITY.
  1. PLANT MANAGER OR HUMAN RESOURCES/SAFETY MANAGER WILL THEN ADVISE THE VICE-PRESIDENT OF MANUFACTURING AND THE VICE-PRESIDENT OF HUMAN RESOURCES, AND THE SAFETY DIRECTOR THAT THERE IS AN OSHA COMPLIANCE OFFICER AT THE FACILITY.
  1. THE PLANT MANAGER OR HR/SAFETY MANAGER WILL ALSO CONTACT FLOOR SUPERVISON TO ADVISE OF THE VISIT AND HAVE A BRIEF OVERVIEW OF THE AREA TO LOOK FOR OBVIOUS PROBLEMS SUCH MISSING GUARDS WET SPOTS, ETC.
  1. SWITCHBOARD PERSONS WILL NOT MAKE ANY OTHER CONTACTS IN REFERENCE TO THE VISIT UNLESS ASKED BY THE PLANT MANAGER OR HR/SAFETY MANAGER.

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