In a speech at the Occupational Safety & Health Review Commission annual judicial conference on September 14, 2010, Dr. David Michaels, Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health, stated that next month, OSHA will formally launch a new policy that increases proposed penalties.
The planned changes to the administrative penalty calculation system were announced by OSHA earlier this year. Changes include:
- History reduction will expand from three to five years.
- A new history increase. Employers that have been cited by OSHA for any high gravity serious, willful, repeat, or failure-to-abate violation within the previous five years will receive a 10 percent increase in their penalty, up to the statutory maximum.
- Time period for repeat violations will be increased from three to five years.
- Area Director/Informal Conference reductions will be changed.
- High gravity serious violations related to standards identified in SVEP will be citable as separate violations.
- A gravity-based penalty determination will be adopted, providing for penalties between $3,000 and $7,000.
- Employment size reductions will be lessened.
- The current good faith procedures will be retained.
- Final penalties will be calculated serially resulting in an increase of approximately 50 percent to a moderate gravity penalty.
To read Dr. David Michaels speech, visit: www.osha.gov/pls/oshaweb/owadisp.show_document?p_table=SPEECHES&p_id=2299
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