So many of us can recall the 2012 “Letter to Regional Admins” titled Employer Safety Incentive and Disincentive Policies and Practices where OSHA called out “safety incentive” programs that encourage under reporting of accidents. Then it was merely a “letter” to regional admin(s). Now the Field Operations Manual (FOM) has been revised in a manner that the CSHO is to look for these types of incentive programs when they find recordkeeping deficiencies during their inspection. Now OSHA has established a connection with Safety Incentive Programs and record keeping violations, as well as a violation of section 11(c) of the OSH Act. Here are the references in the REVISED FOM, published on 10/1/15…
Added language related to Safety Incentive Programs in Chapter 3 Section VI., Review of Records.
VI. Review of Records
A. Injury and Illness Records
1. Collection of Data
a. At the start of each inspection, the CSHO shall review the employer’s injury and illness records for five prior calendar years, record the information on a copy of the OSHA-300 screen, and enter the employer’s data using the OIS Application on the NCR (micro). This shall be done for all general industry, construction, maritime, and agriculture inspections and investigations.
b. CSHOs shall use these data to calculate the Days Away, Restricted, or Transferred (DART) rate and to observe trends, potential hazards, types of operations and work-r elated injuries .
c. If recordkeeping deficiencies or unsound employer safety incentive policies are discovered, the CSHO and the Area Director (or designee) may request assistance from the Regional Recordkeeping Coordinator. See Richard E. Fairfax Memo, Employer Safety Incentive and Disincentive Policies and Practices (March 12, 20123) at: http://www.osha.gov/as/opa/whistleblowermemo.html
d. There are several types of workplace policies and practices that could discourage employee reports of injuries and could constitute a violation of section 11(c) of the OSH Act. These policies and practices, otherwise known as employer safety incentive and disincentive policies and practices, may also violate OSHA’s recordkeeping regulations. OSHA enumerated the most common potentially discriminatory policies in the (March 12, 2012) Memorandum from OSHA Deputy Asst. Sec. Richard E. Fairfax: Employer Safety Incentive and Disincentive Policies and Practices.