Commentary: OSHA Shame Campaign Rolls On – Deserved Or Not

Commentary by, Robert Box

 

OSHA has successfully implemented a more aggressive shame campaign strategy on companies during the Obama administration, and it appears that proof and facts will not slow OSHA down.

 

Historically, OSHA issued Enforcement Press Releases on its website when a significant new set of citations are issued to a company.  These press releases are often picked up by the AP, local and national media to describe the OSHA enforcement action.  However, under the Obama administration, Enforcement Press Releases are being used much more often.

 

In the final 4 years of the G. W. Bush administration, OSHA issued fewer than 600 Enforcement Press Releases (2004-2008: 596).  Under the last 4 years of the Obama administration, OSHA has issued more than 1,800 (2011-2014: 1,815).  The number of violations, the number of citation packages and the number of inspections hasn’t changed all that dramatically, but OSHA Enforcement Press Releases have been issued 3 times more often.

 

These Enforcement Press Releases used to be reserved for the most significant cases.  Generally a press release would be issued for companies receiving penalties of $100k or more, or for high profile fatality cases, but now these Enforcement Press Releases are being issued for matters concerning penalties of around $30k, which is a fairly run-of-the-mill OSHA enforcement action.

 

In addition to the upward trend of the Enforcement Press Releases, the nature of the press release has taken an aggressive tone.  Robert Box, Principal Consultant with Safety First Consulting in Georgetown, Texas says, “In previous administrations, a very factual, black-and-white statement was issued.  Company X received a set of citations, the alleged violations are A, B, C…, the company has 15 days to contest.  Now, amongst the 1,815 press releases under this administration, 100% of them include an inflammatory or embarrassing quotation from a senior OSHA or Department of Labor official blasting the company in derogatory terms, but that doesn’t stop OSHA from making inflammatory quotes.”

 

The other issue with this new stance on Enforcement Press Releases is when they are released.  OSHA issues the Enforcement Press Release when they issue citations to the company, not when OSHA has proven that the company has done anything wrong, and not before the company has the opportunity to defend itself and prove the alleged violations were wrong. 

 

The press releases stay on OSHA’s website forever, even when OSHA has been proven to be wrong.  “An example would be if OSHA alleges your company was a willful violator and it turns out that your company didn’t have any violations at all, there will always be a press release on OSHA’s website that says you are a willful violator and there is nothing you can do to change it at this time,” says Box.

 

OSHA has received a good deal of complaints regarding this new utilization of the Enforcement Press Release, but it is apparent that OSHA isn’t slowing down.

 

Robert Fox

RBox@SafetyFirstConsulting.com