PLEASE NOTE: The law protects the company – NOT the worker. This is a “legal” decision that flies in the face of a recognized hazard. It is also laughable that the FRA would enforce the safety needs for this recognized hazard at a private business that is using its own trackmobile to move the cars in and out of the building. But this is the legal system; NOT a safety management system! PROTECT your people and EVERYONE wins (Workers, Worker’s Familes and the Business).
The Secretary of Labor cited a grain handling business for a willful and serious violation of 29 C.F.R. § 1910.132(d)(1)(i) for failing to ensure employees wore personal protective equipment (“PPE”) while working on top of railcars. After a three-day evidentiary hearing, the Occupational Health and Safety Review Commission’s administrative law judge (“ALJ”) upheld the citation. The Commission denied discretionary review of the ALJ’s decision, and the business now petitions for our review. Concluding the Federal Railroad Administration (“FRA”) preempts the jurisdiction of the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (“OSHA”), we vacate the citation and reverse the ALJ’s order.