A blog focused on OSHA and MSHA compliance in the workplace
by Brad Hiles and Ben McMillen
It can be challenging enough to comply with all of the regulations that apply to your business. What if you don’t even know which safety agency’s rules apply? Which enforcement agents will show up at your door? In some industries, the line between MSHA and OSHA jurisdiction can be complicated and blurry.
Just a few months after OSHA civil penalties increased by 78%, OSHA published another increase to its civil penalties on January 18, 2017. The latest bump in penalties, which a recent federal law required OSHA to issue, was far more modest, amounting to an adjustment for inflation of about 1% based on the Consumer Price Index.
Workplace safety and health law matters usually do not top a new administration’s to-do list. Yet, in an unexpected move, just days after his inauguration, President Trump elevated one of the Occupational Safety and Health Review Commissioners to serve as acting chair of the Commission.
Today, OSHA’s new final rule on slip, trip and fall hazards in general industry took effect. After years of rulemaking, the agency released the final rule in mid-November. OSHA says the rule “updates” general industry regulations for preventing slips, trips, and falls and also adds a new section on personal protective equipment, including requirements for using personal fall protection systems.
