Pay Attention To These Common OSHA Citations

Ed Foulke, co-chair of the firm’s Workplace Safety and Catastrophe Management Practice Group, was quoted in the February 20 article “Pay Attention To These Common OSHA Citations” on Carwash Online.  Ed discussed some of the most frequently cited standards that OSHA inspectors are concentrating on today. He said they seem to be focusing on the use of personal protective equipment (PPE), mostly with respect to safety glasses and other safety equipment. Under the current PPE standards, OSHA has frequently found that many companies are not following through with certain on-site responsibilities. A business is supposed to create a written certification that shows they performed a hazard assessment at their site. “So you don’t even have to have a written hazard assessment, but you’ve got to have a written certification that you did the hazard assessment,” Ed explained. “And OSHA is finding between 60 and 70 percent of the employers in the country aren’t doing that.” Once PPE hazards are found in a business, OSHA then requires training of employees using the agency’s PPE standard. The employer is then responsible for a certification that shows each employee was specifically trained. While most companies may use a general checklist, they may not have any of the required certifications on file.