Chronicling OSHA in 2007: Comparisons With the Rest of the World

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.occupationalhazards.com/News/Article/77862/Chronicling_OSHA_in_2007_Comparisons_With_the_Rest_of_the_World.aspx

January 17, 2008

By Katherine Torres

Although OSHA Administrator Edwin Foulke Jr. pledged to accomplish a laundry list of items by the end of his tenure, safety and health experts maintain the agency isn’t doing enough to serve its mission. With the European Union and the rest of the world taking the lead in adopting innovative approaches to safety and health, these experts fear OSHA is being left behind in the dust.

In an interview with OccupationalHazards.com in December 2006, Foulke stated he expected three or four final rules to be issued by the end of his term in 2008. So far, only one standard – the direct final rule on employer-paid personal protective equipment (PPE) – was issued in 2007.

The agency’s tenacious focus on compliance assistance and alliance programs over enforcement and standard-setting initiatives prompted Joel Shufro, executive director for the New York Committee for Occupational Safety and Health (NYCOSH) to describe the agency as “increasingly irrelevant to workers’ everyday lives” in OccupationalHazard.com’s analysis of OSHA last year.

Most stakeholders are hesitant to use the term “irrelevant” to describe OSHA, but they do wish the agency would shift its priorities from compliance assistance to standards setting and enforcement.
Tarnishing OSHA's Reputation

Charles Jefress, who was OSHA administrator during Clinton administration and currently is a chief administrative officer for the Legal Services Corp., opined that OSHA’s “non-aggressive” enforcement policy has created problems for the agency. He claims a lack of action has tarnished the agency’s reputation as an enforcement agency among the safety and health professionals counting on its presence and support for the work they do.

“OSHA has to have a presence that helps everyone in the safety field … and they should be very present to let folks know that they are there and serious about standards and compliance,” Jeffress notes. “Also, OSHA has a responsibility to use its reputation as a safety and health agency as a way to motivate employers to comply.”

During his tenure as OSHA administrator, Jeffress said the agency did a better job of balancing compliance assistance with enforcement, attempting to allot an equal amount in the budget to each focus.

FULL story at link.