Meat + Poultry - October 2005 - 48

Labor
The shifting tides of OSHA
By Richard Alaniz
meat&poultry@sosland.com

Over the past three years, the Occupational Health and Safety Administration's
recordkeeping requirements have been
significantly revised. These revisions will
bring new responsibilities for employers
to maintain OSHA compliance, and adherence to these requirements will aid
employers in surviving
an OSHA inspection.
Despite the fact that
the meat and poultry
processing industry has
improved worker safety drastically in
recent years, it remains a likely inspection target because of a generations-old
stigma that undeservingly lingers. The
following steps should help employers
maintain safe workplaces while avoiding
OSHA violations:
First, employers should keep accurate records. Nonexempt employers are
required to complete three forms: the
OSHA 300 Log of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses, the annual OSHA
300A Summary of Work-Related Injuries and Illnesses, and the OSHA 301
Injury and Illness Incident Report. The
300 Log must include injuries and illnesses to employees on the employer's
payroll, as well as injuries and illnesses
of any temporary workers or contractors the employer supervises on a dayto-day basis. The 300A Summary must
be posted for 60 days between Feb. 1
and April 30 in the area normally used
by employers to post employee notices.
Employers must make a copy of the
summary available to employees who
move from worksite to worksite.
Incidents must be recorded within
seven days of the occurrence or the time
the employer becomes aware of the occurrence. The employer must enter any
new work-related case that meets one
or more of the recording criteria for
the 300 Log and Form 301. Employers
should always be aware that they have
a duty to keep records as accurate as
possible, and they should amend the

300 Logs as they receive updated information. With regard to the new forms,
employers must keep in mind that they
may be required to withhold employee
names from the reports for injuries and
illnesses that relate to certain employee
privacy concerns, including mental illness or sexual assault. Finally, a company executive must sign or certify the
summary for accuracy.
Next, be prepared at inspection
time. Facing an OSHA inspection can
be a daunting
task for most
e m p l oye r s .
The first thing
to understand
about an inspection is that some 60
percent to 70 percent are triggered
by employee complaints. Knowing
this, employers should focus their
efforts on getting employees to first
report safety concerns to their own
company representatives for support,
not OSHA. This can be achieved by
building employee confidence in your
response to safety issues by developing a reporting system for employee
safety concerns.
However, if an inspection occurs,
a basic understanding of what takes
place will help employers to be prepared. First, a compliance officer
arrives at the worksite and explains
why the employer has been targeted
for inspection, the scope of the inspection and, if applicable, provides a copy
of the employee complaint. Inspectors normally want to examine the
employer's OSHA-related records first,
including required written programs,
training records, evidence of certification (where required), and the OSHA
record-keeping forms discussed above.
Always know where these documents
are stored and keep them up to date and
in good order. The inspectors will also
examine the workplace itself, usually
looking for safety warnings and equipment compliance.
The employer will then be asked
to select an employee representative
to accompany the compliance officer
during the inspection. An authorized

representative of the employees, such
as a union representative, may also
have the right to attend the inspection.
The compliance officer will consult
with other employees privately. Employees will be informed that OSHA
prohibits employers from discriminating against workers based on any
information the employees provide
to the compliance officer during inspection. The topics of questions may
include the employees' safety orientation, specific job training, and training
in case of an accident or emergency.
Companies not in compliance face
several challenges. A noncompliance
action from OSHA can have an impact on morale in the workplace and
lead to the perception that management is not serious about safety. This
may create distrust and anxiety among
the workforce and can spark additional complaints and inspections.
Also, OSHA violations are publicly
available and can negatively affect
company image.
One suggestion for maintaining OSHA compliance is voluntary
participation in an OSHA training
program. This program helps employers set up internal reporting systems,
rather than employees initially reporting any problems to OSHA. Any
internal reporting systems would have
to be distributed and made known to
all employees, contractors and temporary workers. This should result in
goodwill and trust between employees
and management. Another suggestion
is to encourage employee involvement in developing safety programs.
Employers who are conscientious
and prepared can effectively comply
with workplace safety regulations and
weather OSHA inspections.
Richard Alaniz is a partner in the
Houston law firm of Alaniz and
Schraeder L.L.P. Legal topics provide
general information and not specific
advice.
We would like to hear from you- your comments
and questions about this article are welcome.
E-mail the author at: meat&poultry@sosland.com

www.MEATPOULTRY.com

October 2005

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Meat + Poultry - October 2005

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