Washington, D.C. --Nearly 75 percent of the worksites in the United States that were the scene of serious accidents in 1994 and early 1995 had never been inspected by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration in this decade. Almost 2,000 people died in those accidents and thousands more were injured.
U.S. Senator Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.), told the House Small Business Committee that he has a plan that would go farther than the current system to prevent such deaths and injuries. Enzi's plan is contained in the SAFE Act, a bill he authored last year, which has passed through the Senate Labor Committee.
The subject of the committee hearing was a particular provision of the SAFE Act, the third party audit. This provision would afford OSHA's 2,500 inspectors some help in overseeing the safety of the nation's 96.7 million workers spread out across 6.2 million worksites. Through the program businesses would be able to hire OSHA qualified consultants who are experts in their fields. The consultants would advise the business on identification and correction of safety practices and possible health hazards. After the consultant has written a full report and verified that the business has implemented the consultant's safety measures and corrected any safety problems, the business would be exempted from the threat of civil penalties for two years.
"OSHA qualified third party consultants could aid those employers who are reluctant to communicate their compliance problems with OSHA for fear of being fined," said Enzi. "As an accountant, I can relate. Employers are certainly more likely to consult with me about their taxes before asking the IRS for help. This same fear toward OSHA can have a chilling effect on workplace safety."
But some of the hearing participants questioned the legitimacy of the program, saying that businesses would only hire consultants that would write favorable reports.
Enzi and the chairman of the committee, Representative Jim Talent (R-Mo.), who is the sponsor of the House version of the SAFE Act, made a number of points showing the error of such criticism.
The program is overseen by OSHA itself, which retains full authority to inspect the business, revoke the certification of a consultant and subject both the businesses and the auditors to the severest criminal punishment allowed under federal law.
"This bill does not protect bad actors," said Enzi. "Employers must remain in compliance with the consultant's report and if there is a fundamental change in the workplace, such as major new equipment additions, the exemption from civil penalties would not apply. If an employer does not abide by the consultant's report that employer is liable for a willful violation based on lack of good faith to comply."
Third party consultants are held to the highest standards, even to be considered by OSHA they must have a minimum of 10 years of safety and health experience and be licensed by a state authority. This compares to the seven weeks of training it takes to become an OSHA inspector.
"We should also point out that safety is just good business," said Enzi. "The vast majority of employers want their workers to be safe. Just look at the number of small businesses where the employer's family, extended family and friends make up the workforce.
"The third party audit program is a great way to stop people from getting hurt by preventing the situation from developing where there could be an accident. It's the reasonable, proactive approach," Enzi said. "The third party audit provision of my bill will result in the improved safety of the American workplace. If that's genuinely what we're all after, then I can't see anyone seriously opposing this idea. In fact, Vice President Al Gore poured the first significant foundation for third party consultation in his 'reinventing government report,'" said Enzi.
OSHA simply does not have the resources to inspect the millions of businesses across the country. The third party audit program would allow these businesses, which according to a figure supplied by the AFL-CIO would only be inspected once every 167 years, to get the professional safety help they have needed for years. In addition to this monumental time lapse, the sheer diversity of safety and health concerns stemming from restaurants to funeral homes, prohibits OSHA inspectors from fully comprehending each individual worker's needs. Consultants are specialists and would be able to identify problems the untrained eye might not detect.
"These are just a few of the ways the SAFE Act, and the third party audit provision specifically, will improve worker safety," said Enzi. "The law that put OSHA in place was passed nearly 30 years ago. It's long overdue for an update."
