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OSHA's Safety and Health Achievement Recognition
Program (SHARP)
The Safety and Health Achievement Recognition
Program (SHARP) recognizes small employers who operate an exemplary safety and
health management system. Acceptance into SHARP by OSHA is an achievement of
status that will single you out among your business peers as a model for
worksite safety and health. Upon receiving SHARP recognition, your worksite will
be exempt from programmed inspections during the period that your SHARP
certification is valid.
How You Can Participate In SHARP
To participate in SHARP, you must:
- Request a consultation visit that involves a
complete hazard identification survey;
- Involve employees in the consultation process;
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- Correct all hazards identified by the consultant;
- Implement and maintain a safety and health
management system that, at a minimum, addresses
OSHA's 1989 Safety and Health Program Management
Guidelines;
- Lower your company's Lost-Workday Injury and Illness
rate (LWDII) and Total Recordable Case Rate (TRCR) below
the national average; and
- Agree to notify your state Consultation Project
Office prior to making any changes in the working
conditions or introducing new hazards into the
workplace.
SHARP Certification and Inspection Exemption
After you satisfy all SHARP
requirements, the Consultation Project Manager in your
state may recommend your worksite for final SHARP approval
and certification. The state and OSHA will formally
recognize your worksite at a SHARP awards ceremony.
As a certified SHARP site, you will
be granted a 1-year exemption from OSHA's scheduled
inspections for the first year of your SHARP
participation. After one year of certification, you may
request renewal for 1 or 2 years, provided that you:
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Apply for renewal during the last quarter of the
exemption period;
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Allow a full service comprehensive visit to ensure that your
exemplary safety and health management system has been
effectively maintained or improved;
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Continue to meet all eligibility criteria and program
requirements; and
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Agree, if requesting a 2-year renewal, to conduct an
interim-year self-evaluation and to submit a written report
to your state Consultation Program Manager that is based on
the elements of the 1989 Safety and Health Program
Management Guidelines (available online at http://www.osha.gov)
and includes OSHA's required injury and illness logs.
Not Quite Ready for SHARP?
If you meet most but not all of
the SHARP eligibility criteria and are committed to
working toward full SHARP approval, you may be recommended
by your state Consultation Project Manager for an
inspection deferral of up to 18 months if:
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You have had a complete hazard identification
consultation visit at your worksite and you have
corrected all hazards;
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You are in the process of implementing an effective
safety and health management system; and
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You can meet all SHARP requirements during the deferral
period.
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