The North Carolina State OSHA Plan Has its Quirks

Travis Vance’s article “The North Carolina State OSHA Plan Has its Quirks” was featured in Carolina Business Connection on September 30, 2015.

While a “State-OSHA Plan” must at least meet Fed-OSHA standards, these plans often develop their own additional requirements and have widely varying enforcement and appeal processes. When Federal OSHA adopts a new regulation, such as the recently instituted requirement to report all amputations and single hospitalizations for treatment within 24 hours, the regulation became effective immediately in states where the Federal Government enforces the Occupational Safety and Health Act.1 On the other hand, most State OSHA Plans do not automatically adopt Fed-OSHA changes.

Many state programs require the approval of its state legislature before the federally adopted regulation becomes the law. For instance, state plans like Virginia and South Carolina did not adopt the changes until on or after July 1, 2015.

In the article, Travis examines the importance of watching the Feds’ actions if you operated a business in North Carolina and the increase in referral-based inspections.

To read the full article, please visit Carolina Business Connection.