OSHA recently released a draft updated version of its voluntary Safety and Health Program Management guidelines and is seeking public comment on the revisions. Keep reading to find out what’s new—and what it could mean for employers.
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According to OSHA, the new guidelines build on the previous version, which was published in 1989, and incorporate lessons learned from successful approaches and best practices under the agency’s Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) and Safety and Health Achievement Recognition Program (SHARP). Principles from industry and international consensus standards such as ANSI Z10 and OHSAS 18001 also inform the guidance.
Key new elements of the guidelines include:
• A proactive approach to finding and fixing hazards before they cause injury, illness, or death;
• Improved safety and health information for all types of workplaces;
• Help for small and medium-sized businesses;
• An increased emphasis on worker involvement; and
• Strategies for better communication and coordination on multiemployer worksites.
In 1992 I worked for Willamette Industries, a Fine Paper Mfg in Bennettsville, SC. About 2am one morning I was to check and fill a Truck Dump Vessel with hydraulic fluid due to a leaking line. I fell into a concealed open pit and was injured. I still deal with those injuries to this day. I had to go before the SC Worker’s Comp Commission. Willamette hired and attorney but I did not after talking to an attorney and finding that our Governor at that time, Carroll Campbell, had the Commission stacked in order to recruit business. I stated the OSHA Regulation covering open areas that could cause falls; No Grating, No Cover, No Warning! I was told by the Commission they weren’t concerned with Willamette breaking the law. What good is OSHA?