OSHA Fines Increasing by 78%

Jul 12, 2016

Wow. Why so substantial? OSHA has not increased minimum fines for over 25 years, yet the hazards remain. To account for inflation over the years, Congress is requiring federal agencies to adjust penalties accordingly. This includes OSHA.

So what does that mean for employers? The new penalties will take place on August 1, 2016. Any citations issued after that will reflect the new increases. If you have recently been visited and have received citations- those shall not be affected as they are already issued. However, if you have been inspected by OSHA recently and have not yet received the citations- there is a chance you may be ‘lucky’ enough to qualify for the increased fines.

The increase in fines can be quite a motivating factor to avoid them! Take a look at the amounts per each type of fine listed below:

Type of Violation	Current Maximum Penalty	New Maximum Penalty
Serious Other-Than-Serious Posting Requirements	$7,000 per violation	$12,471 per violation
Failure to Abate	$7,000 per day beyond the abatement date	$12,471 per day beyond the abatement date
Willful or Repeated	$70,000 per violation	$124,709 per violation

Does that mean that for every Safety Data Sheet (SDS) that you fail to have for a chemical will cost you $12,471? Not necessarily. First, one has to determine what type of violation it is:

WILLFUL: A willful violation is defined as a violation in which the employer either knowingly failed to comply with a legal requirement (purposeful disregard) or acted with plain indifference to employee safety.
SERIOUS: A serious violation exists when the workplace hazard could cause an accident or illness that would most likely result in death or serious physical harm, unless the employer did not know or could not have known of the violation.
REPEATED: A Federal agency may be cited for a repeated violation if the agency has been cited previously for the same or a substantially similar condition and, for a serious violation, OSHA's region-wide (see last page) inspection history for the agency lists a previous OSHA Notice issued within the past five years; or, for an other-than-serious violation, the establishment being inspected received a previous OSHA Notice issued within the past five years.
OTHER-THAN-SERIOUS: A violation that has a direct relationship to job safety and health, but is not serious in nature, is classified as "other-than-serious."

Second, the fine may not be the entire maximum amount. For example, a few recent citations in Connecticut for failure to comply with the Hazard Communication Standard 1910.1200 varying components (having Safety Data Sheets, labeling, a written program and employee training) were cited $1,200, $2,800 and $2,000. All of these could carry the maximum of $7,000 of fines for each occurrence for their timeframe, but it was still under. This will vary by establishment and circumstance and the recommendation of the OSHA Officer. Now, does that mean that we can also anticipate a 78% general increase on those minimum fines? Could a $2,000 fine now be $3,560? We will have to wait and see what comes out of the OSHA offices...

The best way to avoid heavy penalties is to maintain compliance with OSHA regulations. The Hazard Communication Standard is one of the most frequently cited in industry. For the period between October 2014 through September 2015 (the last reporting year), the following depicts the top five cited Standards in manufacturing industry:

Standard	Citations	Description
Total	14,099	All Standards cited for Manufacturing (part 3 of 3)
19101200	1,253	Hazard Communication.
19100212	1,248	General requirements for all machines.
19100147	1,226	The control of hazardous energy (lockout/tagout).
19100134	1,225	Respiratory Protection.
19100178	760	Powered industrial trucks.

If you don’t know where to start on your road to compliance - this may give you an idea of what first to tackle. I will not lie - it is a long road if you are starting from “where do I begin”. But compliance is attainable and well worth it. Aside from the many benefits - safety, health, and productivity - you will avoid these new fines!

Sources:

Helpful Links

Globally Harmonized System The Globally Harmonized System of Classification and Labelling of Chemicals (GHS) is a system for standardizing and harmonizing the classification and labelling of chemicals.
Hazcomm Standard An update to the Hazard Communication Standard (HCS) which provides a common and coherent approach to classifying chemicals and communicating hazard information on labels and safety data sheets.
Mass.Gov Right-To-Know Establishes minimum standards and reasonable requirements to protect the health and safety of employees through the communication of information regarding toxix or hazardous substances.
Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) Congress created the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)* to assure safe and healthful working conditions for working men and women by setting and enforcing standards and by providing training, outreach, education and assistance