IS YOUR DEPARTMENT READY FOR OSHA REFORM?
FIRE SERVICE COURT
Do your fire chief and officers know that they can be held personally liable or even criminally liable (i.e., go to jail) if a firefighter incurs a serious injury as a result of a willful violation of an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standard? Can your fire department’s budget afford to pay an OSHA fine of several thousand dollars? Several hundred thousand dollars? In short, is your fire department prepared to comply with OSHA standards?
Under the provisions of Senate Bill 575 and House Bill 1280 currently before Congress [known as the Comprehensive Occupational Safety and Health Reform Act (COSHRA)], the jurisdiction of OSHA may be broadened to include all public sector employers and thus most fire departments. In addition, this significant legislation proposes to increase the potential fines for willful violations of the OSHA standards that result in a fatality to up to S250,000 for an individual (i.e., the fire chief or incident commander) and up to S 500,000 for a corporation or organization. If a willful violation of an OSHA standard results in the death of an employee, criminal penalties would be increased from the current level of six months to 10 years for the first offense and 20 years for the second offense. If a willful violation occurs and serious bodily injury is incurred by an employee, a fine of up to 5250,000 and five years’ imprisonment can be imposed on the individual, and the corporation or organization will be prohibited from paying the monetary penalties on behalf of the officer.
Under Title V of the COSHRA, supervisors, line officers, and other management officials who violate the Occupational Safety and Health Act or who direct someone else under their control to violate the OSH Act or standards, if the violation causes the death of or serious bodily injury to an employee, can be held criminally liable for these actions.
Under Title I of the COSHRA, all employers will be required to establish and carry out a written safety and health program. At a minimum, the written program may be required to contain the following, as well as additional requirements:
- methods and procedures for identifying, evaluating, and documenting safety and health hazards;
- methods and procedures for investigating work-related illnesses, injuries, and deaths;
- methods and procedures for correcting safety and health hazards iden-
- tified through implementation of the program;
- methods and procedures for providing emergency response first aid and other occupational safety and health services;
- methods and procedures for employee participation in the implementation of the program, including mandatory joint safety and health committees at most worksites with 11 or more employees; and
- designation of one or more employer representatives who have the qualifications and responsibility to identify and initiate corrective action for safety and health hazards.
The above is just a small portion of the many significant changes that could directly affect your department if and when the COSHRA becomes law. The rules will be changing, the risks will increase, and the penalties will be much higher. Are you prepared for these potential changes and ready to accept the responsibility of ensuring compliance with the OSHA standards?
Endnotes
1. Under the Federal Sentencing Reform Act of 1978, any misdemeanor involving violation of federal law that results in a fatality is punishable by a minimum fine of 5250,000 for an individual and S500,000 for a corporation. The U.S. Justice Department has taken the position that these fines apply to willful OSHA violations resulting in an employee death.
