Pregnant Workers Fairness Act into effect June 27, 2023

Under the new law – set to go into effect June 27 – all employers with at least 15 employees will be required to extend to pregnant workers “reasonable accommodations".

Pregnant workers can ask for accommodations without fear of retaliation from their employer.

If a pregnant worker is hesitant to ask for accommodations, ehsInc CEO Marjorie Del Toro has this advice:

"Take a courteous path into a conversation about the new law. People are still learning about it. Go in and politely say, ‘I really need accommodations.’ Send them an email with a link to H.R. 1065 and say, ‘Respectfully, here are my rights.’”

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OSHA's New "Instance-by-Instance" (IBI) Citing Authority to take in 2023

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has issued new enforcement guidance to make its penalties more effective in stopping employers from repeatedly exposing workers to life-threatening hazards or failing to comply with certain workplace safety and health requirements.
 
OSHA Regional Administrators and Area Office Directors now have the authority to cite certain types of violations as “instance-by-instance citations” for cases where the agency identifies “high-gravity” serious violations of OSHA standards specific to certain conditions where the language of the rule supports a citation for each instance of non-compliance. These conditions include lockout/tagout, machine guarding, permit-required confined space, respiratory protection, falls, trenching and for cases with other-than-serious violations specific to recordkeeping.
 
The change is intended to ensure OSHA personnel are applying the full authority of the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA Act) where increased citations are needed to discourage non-compliance. The new guidance covers enforcement activity in general industry, agriculture, maritime and construction industries, and becomes effective 60 days from Jan. 26, 2023.
 
In a second action, OSHA reminded its Regional Administrators and Area Directors of their authority not to group violations, and instead cite them separately to more effectively encourage employers to comply with the intent of the OSH Act. 
 
Existing guidance on instance-by-instance citations are outlined in the OSHA Field Operations Manual, and CPL 02-00-080, “Handling of Cases to be Proposed for Violation-by-Violation Penalties.”
 
For more information, please visit OSHA’s Enforcement website and Press Release.

 

2023 OSHA Civil Maximum Penalty Amounts

OSHA News Release! 2021 Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries Released

The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released the 2021 Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, which recorded 5,190 fatal work injuries in the United States in 2021, a nearly 9 percent increase from 2020. Black and Latino workers also had fatality rates disproportionately higher than their co-workers.

OSHA Assistant Secretary Doug Parker called the findings, “a call to action for OSHA, employers and other stakeholders to redouble our collective efforts to make our nation’s workplaces safer.”

For more information, please see the OSHA News Release.

Operation Birthday Hug - Sending Birthday and Christmas Cards to Active Military Personnel

December 6th, 2022 - ehsInc sponsored a National Association of Women in Construction (NAWIC) event where ehsInc CEO Marjorie Del Toro along with NAWIC members helped sign Birthday and Christmas cards for active military service men and women.

We want to thank NAWIC for allowing us to do this during their holiday event. 100's of cards were signed and sent out.

Click here to learn more about ehsInc Cares Outreach Programs.