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Preparing for an OSHA Inspection

Preparing for an OSHA Inspection
There have been many reports of OSHA sending out letters to those companies with high injury rates. These letters contain suggestions and warnings on how and why these companies should take immediate steps to protect their workers. These letters are probably a good warning that OSHA may target these companies for an inspection.

These organizations that receive such letters have been found to have an extremely high injury and illness rate at the workplace, resulting in their workers skipping work for days, job transfers or even restricted work activities.

Each year, more than 200 of the biggest establishments receive these letters from OSHA, and the list contains a large number of small companies as well. In the past years, many companies have been inspected by OSHA and due to their work records, they received wall-to-wall inspections and we were thus subsequently fined. There have been many cases were the fines run into the thousands and even millions of dollars.

Unless you prefer to remain ignorant about the working world, it is important to know that OSHA has become increasingly aggressive in the way it enforces its standards and regulations. Apart from this, it has hired many more inspectors, and has begun issuing much larger fines. So, if you have received a letter from OSHA recently, it is important to prepare for an inspection. Preparing for an inspection will minimize your chances of having to pay hefty fines, while at the same time it will ensure that your employees and workplace are safe and productive. This is what you should do:
  • Recordkeeping: Make sure that your safety records are all in place and that it accurately contains reports of all illnesses and injuries that have occurred at your workplace.
  • Check for errors in your Safety Program: Make sure your records accurately reflect what is happening at the workplace, on the route and in the maintenance shops. Make sure your employees are thoroughly trained and you have the documents to prove it.
  • Inspect your Facility Thoroughly: Walk around your facility and check out the conditions. Look for health or safety hazards that may violate the OSHA standards.

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